The Supreme Court upheld Indiana's admittedly tough law on requiring a government issued photo ID (driver license, military ID, government non-driver identification card) for voting.You'd think one of these ID cards for voting would be common sense...gotta prove you are actually a legal voter (believe me, voter registration cards are a joke...I got one here in New Mexico by simply filling out a downloaded form and mailing it in). And I fully agree with having one...nothing guards against fraud better.
I do see one point those opposed to this raise...the cost to the poor/elderly. It's not just the cost of the photo ID (which is usually pretty cheap, $10-$20 or so). To obtain one, often another proof of your identification is required (passport, birth certificate, etc.). And in some cases these can be very pricey (last time I got a passport it was $90).
Across the country, as many as 20 million people lack such identification, most of them minorities and the elderly who don't have drivers' licenses or passports and are unable to afford the cost of obtaining documentation to apply for such identification, advocacy groups say.
OK, solution...standardize the requirements across the nation for obtaining a government ID card. Make it require a birth certificate. And make it, and the birth certificate, free of charge.
If you want more than the basic ID...for example, a driver license (which would meet all the requirements of the ID plus accomplish the driver licensing requirements), you have to pay. If you are a naturalized citizen, you should have everything you need as a product of the immigration/citizenship process already, so it's not an issue...and the photo ID is still free.
I don't see this proposal costing the governments too much...the majority of people use driver licenses for ID, which would still be given at a fee. But the basic photo ID would be free, and obtaining one's own birth certificate should be free to obtain anyway.
Technorati Tags: Politics, Voting
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