A few days ago I published an article about voter fraud and recognized that as much as President Trump and the Republicans falsely claim that large numbers of non citizens vote, it’s just not true. Simply put, they are developing strategies to suppress voting and sow doubt about the accuracy of elections.

President Trump has gone all in in his call for a bill he calls the Save Act. It requires everyone to show proof of citizenship to register to vote, and he claims he won’t sign another bill until this passes. If you listen to him and his minions they tell you the reason is obvious. Why shouldn’t we demand proof of citizenship before we register someone to vote?

Again, glad you asked. Here’s a partial list of my concerns:

• It proposes a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist. Voter fraud is virtually nonexistent and nearly all cases are simple mistakes. You can read an excellent article here. There’s also no evidence that fraud has changed the results of an election. If you’re not a citizen and attempt to vote (even if you’re here legally) you’re guilty of a felony and are subject to possible deportation. Who would risk that for one vote?
• It’s not as simple as it sounds. Proponents argue that the bill isn’t retroactive (ie, if you’re already registered to vote you don’t need to do anything) and your Real ID driver’s license will suffice. It’s true that you don’t need to show proof of citizenship, unless you move or change your name (e.g. if you get married). Your Real ID license will only be accepted if you live in a state where your citizenship status is on your ID. Right now only Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont and Washington do that. My California Real ID states this: “This license is issued as a license to drive a motor vehicle. It does not establish eligibility for employment, voter registration, or public benefits.” I wasn’t able to find recent data on what percentage of drivers have Real ID but if you don’t board an airplane you don’t need one. A license without Real ID won’t suffice anywhere.
• If you don’t have a Real ID from those five states or a passport your best alternative is to get a certified copy of your birth certificate. I was born in Washington D.C. and I can apply online. It goes through www.vitalrecords.org. It’s a process but as far as I can tell there is a $125.00 online processing fee, a $38.95 DC State Government Fee, and an optional $12.00 Qualifying Review fee. They recommend you pay an additional $20.00 for UPS Air Shipping Delivery that will allow you to track your shipment. I checked a few other states and it appears the $!25.00 online processing fee uniform but the state government fee is different.
• OK, still with me? Good. Now if you changed your name when you married you’ll also need a certified marriage certificate to show your new name. Fortunately I didn’t change my name when I got married but if I did I’d need to go through (you guessed it) www.vitalrecords.org. It’s another $125.00 online processing fee and in California a $22.00 State Government Fee.
• During the Jim Crow era attempts were made to prevent poor people from voting using poll taxes. It was just what it looks like: you had to pay to vote. Opposition to these poll taxes culminated in 1964 with the passage of the 24th Amendment to the Constitution. But if the Save Act requires certified documents to prove citizenship and citizens need to pay to acquire these documents, aren’t these poll taxes?

This isn’t an exhaustive list of my concerns but it’s a good place to start. Obviously if Congress passes it and President Trump signs it into law there will be lawsuits. But I think we can save time and money by just walking away from this now and recognizing that this is a solution in search of a problem.