A few days ago on KOS someone posted a link to the story of a reporter testing the current Texas ID law. Even though his ID was valid (he used a current utility bill), he was hassled by the clerk. He eventually got to vote, but only after the supervisor interveined.
So the system was tested, and good triumphed in the end.
But I am just stunned by the reponse to the article.
More below the sideways Ss.
The reporter tells his story:
AUSTIN — Texas voters are not required to show a photo ID to cast their ballot. But that’s not stopping some poll workers from asking that they show one anyway — and making it difficult if they don’t.
Case in point: Williamson County, a Republican bastion north of Austin. I showed up to vote this weekend with one of several legally sanctioned forms of identification — my city utility bill. That’s when the trouble started.
...
...
I showed the supervisor, Peggy, my utility bill from the city of Georgetown bearing my name and address. Peggy looked over her glasses at me with disapproval.
Peggy: “Do you have a driver’s license?”
Me: “This is what I’m giving you for identification.”
eventually:
At that point, she got up, turned around and began leafing through a booklet with the state law. Another supervisor scurried over. Peggy said I wasn’t producing a photo ID. He looked quickly at my utility bill and said, “That looks fine.”
The article goes on a little, but that's the heart of it. I used a valid (non-photo) id, and the poll worker disapproved of it, so she gave him the run-around until a supervisor interveined. Below the article people can post responses. There aren't that many, and I have tried to reply to just about every one that is against the reporter. The negative comments are of this strain:
You stated that you have a current voter registration card. Why didn't you simply show that? That would have saved you and everyone else a lot of grief. Oh wait; then you would not have had an overly dramatic article to write.
or
yeah he was following the law, but why be difficult about it. this is what I find frustrating about journalists they can be such contrarians. when Mr. Slater travels what does he present to TSA? what does he present when cashing a check or buying drugs at the pharmacy
They totally ignore the problem...that the poor or the elderly
may NOT have a driver's license. The reporter is
testing the system...exactly something a reporter should do! This type of blindness..the assumption that
everyone has a driver's license, or a passport, simply boggles my mind. Can't they see that everyone isn't just like them, and that others may not have the same luxuries they do? This blindness, this assumption that everyone is in the middle class, just irritates the hell out of me.
For reference, the Texas Secretary of State clearly list all valid ID:
•a driver's license or personal identification card issued to the person by the Department of Public Safety or a similar document issued to the person by an agency of another state, regardless of whether the license or card has expired;
•a form of identification containing the person's photograph that establishes the person's identity;
•a birth certificate or other document confirming birth that is admissible in a court of law and establishes the person's identity;
•United States citizenship papers issued to the person;
•a United States passport issued to the person;
•official mail addressed to the person by name from a governmental entity;
•a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and address of the voter; or
•any other form of identification prescribed by the Secretary of State.
I know where I voted in Dallas there were signs posted listing all valid IDs, and when I used a current bank statement the poll worker didn't blink. Personally I am a huge defender of poll workers. They volunteer for hours at a time, for free, and usually are friendly and kind and are just pround to be a drop of oil in the gears of democracy. To not read the posted signs, or to have created in your own mind a "preferred" list of IDs that you demand is, among other things, contrary to the law. For readers to chime in, supporting this idea of "preferred ID", just blows my mind.
If anyone wants to pop over and write a comment, feel free. I'm sure Mr. Slater could use the support.