Like John Oliver you probably won’t be surprised to learn that voter ID laws have nothing to do with stopping some desperado from casting a fraudulent ballot – and everything to do with lawmakers manipulating the results of elections. Is voter fraud the monumental problem lawmakers say it is? John frames the answer like this; “Voter fraud is a problem the way that deadly knife play from crabs is a problem. I’m not saying it doesn’t exist – it has happened, but let’s not overreact to one stabbing crab!
Lawmakers claim to be worried about ‘zombies’ voting – seriously. Apparently we need voter ID laws to stop the undead. I thought zombies were tougher and messier to stop. However, locating the ‘original’ copies of one’s birth certificate, social security card and husband’s death certificate – if widowed, might discourage a zombie just as much as it does many Black and Hispanic voters who largely vote on the Democratic ticket. Here is the real reason we’re talking about voter ID. You will see two excited Republicans bragging about how much better their candidates did, because of voter ID laws keeping certain voters from the polls.
While we’re talking about spooky things, John narrates a brief flurry of ‘ghost voting’ – a sport enjoyed by legislators, often using a long, crooked stick to vote for other legislators near and far. .I’m certain there is a law which entitles them to vote many times, they’re professionals after all.