Some random thoughts about the year gone by

We know its only the last day of November and most writers wait until the end of December to reminisce about the year gone by, but here's some random highlights.

The GOP primaries

Buzz and I started our primary coverage up North in New Hampshire is early January. It was the first time Buzz and I took the VW Micro-bus into the Granite state for the Presidential Primary.  The nation's first primary was originally held on the second Tuesday in March, but has slowly crept forward in order to be the nation's first primary.  In 2012, it was held on January 10th.

Mitt Romney ended up winning New Hampshire this year, just a week after Rick Santorum's strong showing (and eventual win in Iowa.)  It was Jon Huntsman's first and last stand, and we got to meet former Louisiana Governor Buddy Roemer in a cigar shop and see fringe comic candidate Vermon Supreme get tackled by security outside a Santorum event.

New Hampshire is a great state for the first primary, because it is so small and most of the events are within a 20 mile radius of Manchester.  It is a political junkie's dream, because most major candidates are still on the ballot, the events are usually small enough that you can actually personally meet the candidates, and downtown Manchester is a virtual who's who of national news figures.  CBS's Bob Schieffer, MSNBC's Chris Matthews and Lawrence O'Donnell, and NBC's David Gregory were among the many we bumped into in Manchester.

Santorum and Newt Gingrich were nightmares for Romney.  They both won primaries or caucuses while causing Romney to try to out conservative them.  Rick Perry provided some very comical moments, including his famous "ooops" moment at one of the hundreds of GOP debates.

2016 promises to be even more eventful, because not only will the GOP be fighting it out for the nomination, but there will be a contested Democratic primary.  Don't worry, Buzz and I will be there.  For a political junkie, once you've been to New Hampshire for primary season, you gotta go back.

PA's voter suppression law

In the early Spring of 2012, Pennsylvania's Republican controlled legislature decided to join a number other GOP legislatures across the country and attack the phantom problem of in person voter fraud.  They passed, and Governor Tom Corbett signed a voter photo ID law.

Despite it's lofty purpose of combating in person voter fraud, the true purpose behind this law was expressed by PA House Majority leader Mike Turzai in June, when he told a GOP State Committee gathering that the PA Voter ID law would guarantee a Romney victory in PA by stopping Democratic leaning voters from voting.

The challenges to the law were filed shortly after its passage, and Judge Robert Simpson got it right on the second try.  He stopped the law from going into effect for November, 2012.  A hearing on the future implementation has been scheduled for December.

What we found most telling was despite the fact that study after comprehensive study failed to find any in person voter fraud across the nation, GOPers insisted that in person voter fraud was rampant, especially in heavily Democratic areas like Philadelphia County.  It was also interesting that one third of the members of the PA Voter Hall of Fame (persons who voted in 50 consecutive general elections) didn't have the proper photo ID to vote, and would have been turned away from the polls on election day.

Democratic Sweep in PA

Despite having lost a US Senate seat in 2010, the governorship, and losing ground in both Houses of the PA legislature, Democrats rebounded in 2012, by winning all statewide contests.  Barack Obama, US Senator Bob Casey, and all three state row offices (including the first ever win for State Attorney General) all went handily to the Democrats.  The Democrats even won a majority of votes in the United States Congress races.  Only partisan gerrymandering allowed them to win 13 out of 18n seats in Congress.

Pennsylvania is no longer a swing state in national elections, unless the GOP reinvents itself down the road.  We are still in the words of James Carville, "Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, with Alabama in the middle."  The problem for the GOP statewide is that the margins in Democratic areas, particularly Philadelphia County and its suburbs are becoming almost insurmountable.  When the Dems come out of Philly alone with a 500,000 vote advantage, its almost game, set, and match.

Pennsylvania Supreme Court has to grow a few

 Judge Haller says it's judicial restraint, a Court giving great deference to the state legislature, but to Buzz and me, it's a lack of chutzpah. C'mon call a spade a spade, or as we said in our last column, call a duck a duck.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court punted the Pennsylvania Voter ID law back to the Commonwealth Court. Justices Debra Todd and Seamus McCaffrey at least had the brass to call it like it is.  They would have thrown out the law for what it is --- a partisan political ploy to disenfranchise Democratic leaning voters.

McCaffrey was animated at the oral argument and was eloquent in his support of the right to vote by all citizens, regardless of the size of their wallet.

"I was elected by the people of our Commonwealth, by Republicans, Democrats, Independents and others, as was every single Justice on this esteemed Court," McCaffrey wrote.   "I cannot now be a party to the potential disenfranchisement of even one otherwise qualified elector, including potentially many elderly and possibly disabled veterans who fought for the rights of every American to exercise their fundamental American right to vote."

"While I have no argument with the requirement that all Pennsylvania voters, at some reasonable point in the future, will have to present photo identification before they may cast their ballots, it is clear to me the reason for the urgency of implementing Act 18 prior to the November 2012 election is purely political.  That has been made abundantly clear by the House Majority Leader.  I cannot in good conscience participate in a decision that so clearly has the effect of allowing politics to trump the solemn oath that I swore to uphold our Constitution.  That Constitution has made the right to vote a right verging on the sacred, and that right should never be trampled by partisan politics," McCaffrey concluded.

This law, like many of others passed by GOP controlled legislatures across the country, is a blatant attempt to stop Democratic leaning voters from voting.  IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH PROTECTING THE INTEGRITY OF ELECTIONS.  The Commonwealth admitted this when it stipulated that in person voter fraud doesn't exist, and they didn't see it occurring in the future.

Elections should be decided by a vigorous discussion of the ideas and getting as many voters as possible to the polls.  It should not be decided by keeping voters who disagree with you away from the polls.

We should make voting as easy as possible.  Instead of passing laws that restrict voting, the legislature should be passing laws that expand voting --- like early voting, same day registration, and other laws that increase voter participation.

Throughout our nation's history we have expanded the franchise to African-American citizens, to women, to 18 year olds.  Since when did it become the vogue to start restricting the franchise?  Perhaps when political consultants realized that certain groups can be kept away.

The right to vote is sacred.  It is our way to change the direction of the country, to change the laws, to make things better.  Let's stop playing games with the precious right for which so many of our forefathers gave their lives.

Pennsylvania Voter ID, will the GOP Justices give it a wink and a nod

If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it could be a dragon doing a duck impersonation. Will the PA Supremes call a dragon a duck.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court heard arguments on the new Photo Voter ID law yesterday.  It is apparent that the three Democratic Justices (Seamus McCaffrey, Debra Todd, and Max Baer) all see the political motive behind this law. To paraphrase GOP House leader Mike Turzai, the new law will allow Romney to win Pennsylvania.

The question as we see it is whether the three GOP Justices (Ronald Castille, Michael Eakin, and Thomas Saylor) will see it that way, or will they hide behind the the technical and rigid preliminary injunction case law as Judge Robert Simpson did in the Commonwealth Court.

Buzz and I met with OVC legal expert former Judge Chamberlain Haller at his summer retreat in the Poconos. Haller had some interesting observations on the pending case before the PA Surpemes.

"I watched the argument on PCN yesterday and I saw a glimmer of hope for the opponents of this law," Haller said while enjoying an unfiltered Camel and contemplating his next chess move.  "Justice McCaffrey and Justice Todd were openly lobbying their Republican colleagues during the oral argument.  They kept saying, 'what's the rush?'  This was a clear indication that the Democratic Justices are offering a way out for their GOP colleagues."

"Generally Courts like to decide cases on the narrowest grounds possible, especially in controversial cases.  The 'what's the rush?' strategy would allow the Courts to grant a preliminary injunction without reaching the merits of the law.  They could kick the can down the road a bit and see what happens with photo ID efforts over the next six months," Haller said.

This brought a smile to our faces.  There may be a middle ground which stops the disenfranchisement of thousands of Pennsylvania voters.  Hope springs eternal.

It is undisputed that in-person voter fraud simply does not exist  in Pennsylvania, or for that matter, anywhere in the United States.  Study after study has shown that you have a better chance of getting hit by lightning than someone voting in-person for someone else, and remember, that is the only thing that this new photo ID law is attempting to prevent.  

It won't stop absentee ballot fraud.  It won't stop voter registration fraud.  It won't stop election officials from tampering with election results.  And it won't stop the buying of votes.  The only thing it will stop is eligible voters without the proper ID from voting, and this includes many minority voters, many poor voters, and a whole bunch of older voters from casting ballots.

One of the major arguments that Buzz and I hear the most in support of a Photo ID requirement to vote goes like this:  "You need photo ID to buy beer, to cash a check, to buy Sudafed, or to get on an airplane."

Here's where that argument falls apart.  Underagers try to buy beer, criminals try to cash forged checks, Meth manufacturers try to buy Sudafed, and terrorists try to get on airplanes.  All of these actions have been documented time and time again.  That's why we require ID for these everyday interactions.  In-person voter fraud, on the other hand, is simply not a problem

A decision is expected within the next few weeks.  Let's hope the Court does the right thing and stops this clearly partisan and politically motivated law.