More on the issues here in Arizona…and, while these may be Arizona issues FOR THE MOMENT, the flood of illegal aliens and the speed with which they are now moving into other parts of the country will make this a universal American problem very, very soon…
As long ago as October 2003 FrontPage Magazine wrote an article about the then pending Proposition 200, also known as Protect Arizona Now or PAN, that went before the Arizona voters in November 2004.
PAN spokeswoman Kathy McKee explained that Arizona citizens have reached a point where they feel their government is paralyzed and unresponsive to the overwhelming public demand to deal with the state’s immigration nightmare.
PAN would require proof of citizenship before registering to vote and upon Election Day, as well as requiring state workers to check the immigration status of anyone who applies for state services. These measures would present minor changes to the state's constitution and would be applied across the board regardless of race or nationality. People who are already registered to vote would be grandfathered in; thus, it would only affect those who register after the act's passage.
PAN makes a clear case for reform. On the issue of voter fraud, they cite a report by the Republican former Secretary of State Betsey Bayless showing that in 1998 more than 500,000 unverifiable names were on the voter rolls. Bayless went on to ease the ability to register and removed only 65,000 of those names, doing little to fix the problem. In the past, thousands of deceased people have been found to have voted for years after their deaths. One anonymous citizen registered his dog to show the ease of committing voter fraud in Arizona.
That proposition passed OVERWHELMINGLY – by both white, black, Hispanic voters – you name it – WE VOTED IT INTO LAW.
But, do you think the fact that the voters said in practically one voice “We are sick and tired of the illegal alien problem and we aren’t going to take it anymore!” mattered one whit to our governor?
OF COURSE NOT
She has blocked, vetoed, ignored, thwarted, argued over, disputed, held-up – whatever she thought she could get away with – trying to stop this legislation that we – the voters – approved.
One of the key issues with PAN was a requirement that every person that wants to cast a ballot must provide proof of citizenship. How difficult is that?
I point you back to the FrontPage article and the fact that our governor – Janet Napolitano – expressed her intent to allow illegal aliens to obtain drivers licenses, which is just one step away from illegals also obtaining voter registration cards…a move that clearly is designed to keep Janet Napolitano in power…
Current regulations allow voters to register by mail or over the internet with no proof of citizenship required. Mail-in ballots are common, ensuring those who seek to commit fraud never come into direct contact with any election official. If Napolitano and other Democrats in the state legislature are successful in loosening the requirements to obtain a state drivers license, illegals would be eligible to register to vote through the Motor/Voter Act.
Both the federal "Help America to Vote Act" of 2002 and the Arizona State Constitution require passage of laws that “strengthen the integrity” of voter rolls. As Title 7, Section 12, of the Arizona Constitution states, ”There shall be enacted registration and other laws to secure the purity of elections and guard against abuses of the elective franchise.”
Further impetus for the initiative was made dramatically clear after Gov. Napolitano vetoed legislation that would have required identification to register and vote. She stated her fear that such a law would disenfranchise “poor voters” and implied the bill was intended to violate the civil rights of legal Latino citizens. Naturally, Napolitano ignores the fact that 11 other states already have similar voter ID requirements.
PAN was more blunt. “It was just a bunch of crap,” McKee remarked. “She did it with a lot of fanfare in front of the Association of Latino Elected Officials conference that they had here in front of a largely Hispanic audience. I mean, who is she catering to? What a political gesture.”
McKee went on to explain that they are not asking for a new form of ID to be issued to register to vote but “the same photo ID required to cash a check, apply for welfare, sign a lease, go to the Phoenix city dump, or for goodness sake, even get a video rental card at Blockbuster.”
“I guess (Gov. Napolitano) doesn’t think voting is as precious as going to the Blockbuster or going to the city dump.” McKee said.
So, what can I tell you has changed in Arizona today after Proposition 200 passed?
Nothing.
Nothing has changed.
The law is on the books…passed by the voters – the LEGAL citizens of Arizona…
To quote Arizona legislator Russell Pearce: " the governor has been engaged on fighting us on every issue including Prop. 200 and after it passed overwhelmingly she is still trying to stop its implementation. "
DR
