As we all know, a lot of voter ID bills are making their way through various state legislatures. Many liberals say it will lower turnout among poor people and minorities who do not have these IDs. First of all, I know some things wrong with that argument. And second, there's another issue here altogether.
Forget the fact that they're doing it. That doesn't matter here. But doesn't it bother you that they CAN do it? I don't mean in the constitutional sense. Doesn't it bother you that our party is built that way? That a lot of our voters don't turn out, and can easily be turned away by simple legislation?
Also, they said that the "enthusiasm gap" was caused by the fact that Democratic constituencies don't turn out in high rates in midterms. ISN'T THAT A PROBLEM? And all we do is worry why they're not voting, instead of wondering why we rely on such unreliable people. If a party needs to beg its voters to vote, and they still don't, it has problems. They say we need Obama to promise and deliver his message. Well, guess what? Obama is not going to be around forever. We need voters we can reliably count on to vote in every election.
Can we really be called a possible majority coalition if it depends on low-turnout demographics who can't even get past a poll ID?
Nobody I ever talk to has an answer. They dodge it, as if they don't want to think about it. Nobody ever gives me a straight answer. One time I asked my friend about this, a political activist, and he immediately responded with, "I do not want to be in the party of white supremacists and racists."
Well, that's all fine and dandy. Neither do I. I knew he was talking about the GOP and analyzing my message that way, but that's not what I asked. Far from it. I asked that if our coalition is toppled by simple barriers, is it really strong enough to stay viable?
When I said that to him, "Then we have to get out the vote." And I guess that's good, too. But that STILL doesn't answer my question. Nobody answers me. They just change the subject.
And guess what? We got out the vote in 2010. Like crazy. The DCCC said that they had the biggest GOTV operation ever. Bigger than in 2008. And we still lost big. So advocating that doesn't help if it didn't work.
But here's another thing that bothers me. Why don't Democrats ever try to suppress GOP votes? It is completely one-sided. I mean, of course, you can question the morality of doing such a thing, but not everyone in state legislatures have the same morals and goals as we do.
You can say that Democrats believe in the right to vote, but that's bullshit. Both sides believe in the right to vote. They just express it differently. Democrats believe in letting as many people vote as possible. Republicans never say you can't vote, but try to make it harder to do so. If you are up against an enemy that wants to make it difficult for their opponent's supporters to vote, why are you just standing there? Do it to the other side.
Leave your voting rights activism at the door for a second. I personally believe that everyone should have the right to vote. But my love for Democratic victories far outweighs helping my opponents vote (remember, voting rights helps BOTH sides vote).
For example, in some states, they send fewer voting machines to Democratic areas to make it harder. How come Democratic states don't do that to GOP areas? In 2008, when Wisconsin was run fully by Democrats, why didn't they send fewer ballots to Washington and Waukesha County? It would make our job much easier, especially in a close race. If Doug La Follette this year had just made it harder for those guys to vote, Prosser wouldn't have won. Which do you love more, winning, or your enemies voting?
Now, I'm not advocating voter suppression, per se. I'm just trying to get you to see it in their perspective. And I know many of you would disagree. And I believe that if the GOP isn't doing it, we shouldn't either. But if one side wants to keep us down, why don't you want to keep them down? Is it because you believe that even people you hate have the right to vote? Well, stop thinking about them and think of yourself for once.
Some people here are proud of the fact that this separates them from the GOP. We're not anti-democracy like they are. But if they win a close race, these people blame suppression, and just fume over how ingenious the Republicans are. Why be so proud of something that weakens you? Fuck voting rights, I want to win.
Voters don't care about which party wants to grant them the right to vote. The right to vote is constitutionally settled. People care whether they have money in their pockets and peace overseas. Politics is already a brutish sport; trying to make it better won't win over any voters until you put some money in your pocket.
So making it harder for Republicans to vote lowers turnout for our enemies, and loses almost no voters of our own. If your conscience says not to do this, don't listen to it so eagerly. Go over the disadvantages in your head. Can you think of any for you?
You have to ask yourself one question: do I want to stay in a party with low-turnout voters, easily stopped by basic legislation, and has no guts to turn the tables on its enemy? Or do I want to be in a party with strong, reliable voters, who are not easily turned away, and turn the tables on everything its enemy tries?