Voter Fraud
The Democrats have finally found some voter fraud in which they can believe. It appears that we are headed for an election re-do in the North Carolina 09. Absentee ballots were apparently “harvested” selectively to produce the winning margin of the Republican candidate. That very same candidate used the very same same consultant who apparently harvested his primary victory.
We need to start by dealing with several myths surrounding this subject.
Republicans, at least some of them, claim there is widespread voter fraud. They have produced no evidence to support that claim. The commission Trump set up to substantiate the charge has quietly disappeared.
Democrats, most of them, claim that laws requiring a voter to show a picture ID to vote are designed to depress minority (Democratic) turnout. The results have not justified that charge. In almost every case, minority turnout has increased in states with ID laws.
Democrats, almost all of them, claim that voter fraud is virtually non-existent. That is not true. Jack Kennedy beat Richard Nixon based partially on margins in Texas provided by border precincts purchased by Lyndon Johnson. That is why he was selected as the VP. The remaining margin was provided by Richard Daley, ward boss of Chicago’s cemeteries. Nixon did a lot of bad stuff, but resisting the temptation to request a recount was an act of great patriotism. I have personally observed a minder bringing voters into a polling place and instructing them how to vote. Gore’s volunteers worked the nursing homes in Florida with voting instructions. They screwed up the instructions and Pat Buchanan got the votes as a result. Hillary had the support of 100% of an upstate Orthodox community in her first senate run. Tom Daschle won a close race with 100% of the vote from an Indian reservation. As I recall, the vote total exceed the population of the reservation. On a regular basis, inner city precincts in Philadelphia and St. Louis post more votes than registered voters. It may not be widespread, but there is fraud.
The most recent and pernicious voter manipulation scheme managed to swing several House races in Orange County. The California legislature passed a law saying that anyone could bring in absentee ballots. The old law specified that the bearer of the ballot had to be someone with a documented and close relationship to the voter. If this is not an invitation to fraud, I cannot imagine what is. California legalized the “harvesting” process that is being challenged in North Carolina.
I have three suggestions for improving the situation.
Voter rolls should be kept current. The appearance of integrity is essential to the democratic process. Registering to vote is not an odious process. Democrats in many states have succeeded in making it an automatic part of renewing a driver’s license. Voting is a right, but it is also a privilege. Taking the trouble to register is a small price to pay for that privilege. Voter rolls should contain only the names of people who are alive, live in the precinct, and have registered. Their identity should be checked. The source of absentee ballots should be carefully monitored.
Democrats who decry ID requirements have a simple path to happiness. Help those folks you see as deprived get an ID. Give them a ride to the DMV. Many of the doors in modern American life are closed to those without ID. In addition to securing electoral loyalty, political volunteers could improve the lives of those disadvantaged by lack of documentation.
Outlaw vote harvesting. Given the right information pulled from voter rolls and social media, a campaign organization could determine the outcome of an election with selective harvesting, even without cheating by destroying votes for the other team — which apparently went on in North Carolina.
One of the major keys to successful democracy is acceptance of the results of elections. Elections must be perceived as a genuine and complete expression of the will of the voters. Any hint of fraud is incredibly corrosive. We need to work at eliminating all fraud and any perception of fraud.
