As Maryland Radically Liberalizes Voting Laws, Media Remains Silent
Published February 24, 2006
Here in Annapolis, Maryland, local, state, and national media remained silent while Democrats in the General Assembly quietly overrode no less than three vetos by Republican Governor Bob Ehrlich, making Maryland's voting laws the least transparent and most liberal in the nation. From local and state news sources, not a word was breathed. From the national media, including, even, Fox News... nothing!
Only author and WSJ columnist John Fund seems to have noted Maryland's radical moves toward their new "vote early and often" elections policy. As Fund aptly notes:
It should normally be difficult to pick the worst state legislature in America, but Maryland's is way out in front. First it overrode GOP Gov. Bob Ehrlich's veto of a special health-care tax on Wal-Mart. Democratic legislators then passed three election-related bills and again mustered the necessary three-fifths votes to overturn his vetoes. Together the election laws would so weaken safeguards against voter fraud as to make Maryland the nation's prime example of Election Day irresponsibility.The gravity of the changes is causing dismay, and not just for the governor. A bipartisan state advisory commission headed by the revered George Beall, the former U.S. attorney who convicted Spiro Agnew of tax evasion, had urged legislators to sustain the Ehrlich vetoes...
Blair Lee IV, the son of a former Democratic governor who is supporting an Ehrlich opponent this year, questions why Democrats are "pushing through such dangerous election laws opposed by nonpartisan election officials." He warns his party that "nothing is more important than the integrity of elections--not even defeating the Republicans in November."
But partisan tensions are now at flood level in Annapolis. Mr. Ehrlich, the first GOP governor in four decades, claims some Baltimore Sun writers are so unfair he won't cooperate with them. For his part, State Senate President Mike Miller boasted this month to his caucus that "we're going to shoot [Republican leaders] down. We're going to bury them face down in the ground, and it'll be 10 years before they crawl out again." Startled Republicans hope to collect 50,000 signatures calling for a November referendum on one or more of the election bills, a move that would block them from taking effect until after a vote.
Other than Mr. Fund's enlightening article and a brief mention of these and other Maryland legislative issues in a Washington Times Op Ed, the media has remained nearly silent. The only other mention to be found was an article written by Richard Hasen in Slate Magazine. In his article, Mr. Hasen focused a great deal of his energy on bashing Republicans for enacting "election reform on a partisan basis" — i.e., enacting voter identification laws — but makes the briefest of mentions — about two sentences — regarding the changes wrought in Maryland. Mr. Hasen, whose article was nearly 1500 words long, would say only this of Maryland's election changes:
- As Maryland Radically Liberalizes Voting Laws, Media Remains Silent
- Published: February 24, 2006
- Type: News
- Section: Politics
- Filed Under: Culture: Media, Politics: U.S.
- Writer: David Flanagan
- David Flanagan's BC Writer page
- David Flanagan's personal site
- Spread the Word
- Like this article?
- Email this
Save to del.icio.us
Comments on this articleComments
Red,
Seems to me I've heard that argument, but I don't see any evidence of what you're talking about. Please enlighten me regarding all of these "outrageous laws."
And please don't start with laws pertaining to ID requirements. Most other democratic nations, including Iraq, have much higher standards of proof that are required for citizens to vote. Requiring some kind of identification is minor.
David
It would have been nice if you had actually mentioned what the reforms are.
I agree with you David. Only someone who is up to no good themselves would be against voter ID laws. The Democrats objected when the state of Georgia wanted to pass a voter id law saying that old people and poorr people wouldn't be able to get to the town or state offices to obtain a valid ID. This begs the question if they can't get to the correct government office to obtain an ID how will they get thier on election day? Are they all using write-in ballots.
But this is beside the point anyhow as the government in Georgia even offered to go to people's homes and bring them to get IDs if they couldn't find thier own transportation yet the Dems still objected.
I guess the Dems can't win an election without all that "undocumented worker" (illegal alien) support.
While I don't see a problem in general with this sort of bill, in a state as notorious for rampant corruption and vote fraud as Maryland I'd be very hesitant to pass such a thing. Maryland would certainly be in my top 3 of states where I'd expect a system like this to lead to massive fraud.
Dave
which allows convicted criminals to register and vote in Maryland immediately after being released from jail
Well there's a break for Lindy England.
Dave
Maryland - Darn. Please allow only US Citizens to vote in our state. Please make some rules as to when you can regain the right to vote in the event you spend time in Jail. Please don't create a voting block of illegals and of criminals. Please Maryland - democrats and republicans let the legal residents of Maryland be the ones who vote. Any more I'd just as soon see all the politicians be forced to have a real job instead of one where their special interest and ego's go wild.
Jim Goff - Germantown
To #3 Fifth Dentist... click on the blue highlighted words and phrases to read details of the reforms mentioned in the article.
Let me get this straight -- Iraq should be our model for an electoral system?
It's election day. I got mugged in DC late last week and have no picture ID. I'm grateful I didn't lose my right to vote along with my wallet.
Add your comment, speak your mind
(Or ping: http://blogcritics.org/mt/tb/44075)
Republicans pass all kinds of outrageous laws, including poll taxes, to block minorities and others from voting. Republican's are well known for voter intimidation, handing out flyers announcing the wrong election day, and vast numbers of other abuses. I'm sure the Diebold machines will just be set to counteract the Maryland changes.
I'm glad Maryland is making it easier for people to have there voice heard, that is what Democracy was supposed to be about.