TRUMPS VOTER INTIMIDATION IS RIGHT OUT OF THE GOP PLAYBOOK
By Thom Palmer
October 18, 2016
Lately I've been hearing a lot of Hillary supporters complain that they are afraid to vote, fearful of putting Hillary lawn signs and bumper stickers on their cars, worried about damage to property and body. The deplorables are out in full force lately, attempting to scare enough voters into not showing up to vote. This is nothing new. The Republican party has been using these tactics for two decades running, the only difference being their nominee actually calling for violence verbally at his rallies. He is attempting to mainstream voter suppression, because it is his only path to victory.
The threats of violence from right-wing extremists should Hillary win are just smoke rings. There will be no violence of any concern after the election. Most of the Trump voters know that this would be a really bad idea. They might protest, but would be met with serious police action, and whatever they want to muster up would quickly be extinguished. Peaceful transfer of power is what the world has respected most about our form of democracy. We're not about to risk the very thing that makes us who we are. I'm not worried about that at all, but I'm more worried that this type of FASCISM is being accepted by so many people within the Republican party and their voters.
This fascism needs to be quashed in a massive landslide victory for Clinton and Democrats down-ticket. It's imperative that Democratic voters show up and vote, since a small loss in voters, with four candidates in the race, could easily end up being a surprise win for the fascist, in which case we everything is at risk. There has never been a more consequential election in the history of our nation.
The road in which the GOP has paved for Trump has backfired. Now, they have a nominee who is hell bent on destroying the fabric of the nation, while at the same time promoting the advancement of Vladimir Putin's Russia as the sole remaining super-power in the world. While he won't release his tax returns, it doesn't take a private eye to see the financial, personal, and philosophical connections between Trump and Putin. Putin kills journalists and opposing politicians, and threatens the people should they disagree with him. Trump vows to dismantle the First Amendment and imprison his political foes, and threatens harm to those who do not vote for him. The similarities between their philosophy is another article altogether, but this is where Republicans created the anxiety that brought Trump to power within their party, and then lost control altogether as Trump took it to the next level, verbally announcing what was hush-hush and wink-wink previously.
"YOU HAVE NOTHING TO FEAR BUT FEAR ITSELF" -FDR
In 1941, millions of Americans stood up to the Empire of Japan and fascists Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. Sure, our entire nation was afraid to a degree, but they knew what was at stake, so they did not hide, and charged into battle. Through sheer will, they overpowered and defeated the biggest threat the world had ever known (up to that point). The stakes are even higher in this election.
REPUBLICAN ELECTION FRAUD AND VOTER SUPPRESSION IS NOTHING NEW
Republican politicians speak regularly about the need to eliminate voter fraud, even though none exists. Their solution to the imaginary problem is to invoke a fraudulent set of restrictions on Democratic leaning voters. Republicans have engaged heavily over the last decade passing state laws which suppress the both the conservative and the progressive vote, but their loss in conservative votes is rewarded by an even larger loss (double) in the progressive vote.
Per a study done by University of California San Diego after the 2014 mid-term elections, "...strict ID laws depress Latino turnout by 9.3 points, Black turnout by 8.6 points, and Asian American turnout by 12.5 points...” The impact of strict voter ID was also evident in general elections, where minority turnout plummeted in relation to the white vote. “For Latinos in the general election, the predicted gap more than doubles from 4.9 points in states without strict ID laws to 13.5 points in states with strict photo ID laws,” the study found. That gap increased by 2.2 points for African Americans and by 5 points for Asian Americans. The effect was even more pronounced in primary elections.
The GOP doctrine says "If we can't beat them, stop them from voting". From gerrymandering congressional districts to group large numbers of Democratic voters into one district to decrease voting hours, so that working class voters have a harder time making it out to the polls. Here's the really crazy thing that they're getting away with. They require a government issued photo I.D., which costs money ( no different than a poll tax ) and time that many don't have, then close DMV's, so that in order to obtain the I.D., 30 miles or more must be driven, placing hardship on the elderly, handicapped, low income, and working voters who do not have the ability to get to a far away DMV during business hours. Then of course, they cut down the number of polling places in Democratic districts so that many will find the wait time unacceptable ( three hours of more in places ). This is fascism without a doubt. Attempting to quash political opposing views through intimidation and laws designed to fix elections is classic fascism.
Make no mistake. The United States is under attack. Not from foreign terrorists as they lead you to believe, but from fascists right here, embedded in our very own Congress. Luckily, we have this thing called "The Constitution of the United States" which gives each and every American the ability to remove this disease which has infected our nation.
Here are some ways the GOP has waged war against the people.
1. Changing polling locations. An election official can make this call just days before an election.
2. Changing polling hours or eliminating early voting days. This may be particularly problematic in urban counties where long polling lines are most likely, as Henry Grabar reported last fall.
3. Reducing the number of polling places. This raises the same problem as above, particularly when the eliminated polling places had disproportionately served minority communities.
4. At-large elections. At-large elections for school-board members or city councils often dilute the voting power of minorities who have greater influence in single-candidate district elections. In an at-large election, a cohesive voting block with 51 percent of the vote can elect 100 percent of the officials.
5. Packing majority-minority districts. Election maps drawn to push all of a community's minorities in one or a handful of districts can dilute their voting power.
6. Dividing minority districts. Similarly, election maps can slice minority communities into multiple districts so that they have no cumulative influence in any one place. The line between these two tactics is a fine one (and also illustrates why the VRA was useful for assessing facts on the ground).
7. Voter ID laws: This increasingly popular tactic, sometimes likened to a modern-day poll tax, has the potential to disenfranchise voters who don't have a driver's license, or who don't have the money or ability to obtain one (a disproportionate share of these people are minorities). Such laws can also have a disproportionate impact in cities, where many people don't own cars.
8. Onerous candidate qualifications. In 2007, a Texas provision tried to limit those people eligible to become water district supervisors to landowners who were registered to vote.
9. Changing multi-lingual voter assistance. Making it harder for non-English language speakers to vote is a good way to dilute their power.
10. Changing election dates in state elections. Another trick that may not require legislative approval.
11. Creating new elections. In 2006, the DOJ objected to a plan in the Houston area that would have eliminated some joint elections and required voters to travel to multiple polling places.
12. Canceling elections. We're not even really sure how Kilmichael, Mississippi, thought they could get away with this.
FASCISM IN THE USA
Fascism, in order to succeed, must be sold to the population as a good thing and in their best interest. A sense of national pride and the condemnation of large groups of people who are accused by the government of "being the problem". Religious and racial persecution is a big part of being a good fascist, since denigrating these minorities promotes that "our race", "our religion", "our color" is superior to theirs, and that they need to be purged from "our society". Fascism exploits fear, and exploits the deepest, darkest corners of the mind of the disenfranchised and low education voters. In essence, it is mob psychology, convincing those who have little, that they have little because of outside influence on the economy, and perceived threats on their way of life. Benito Mussolini popularized fascism, and swung the concept to the far right. Selling fascism to the majority, or even a strong minority, gives way to dictatorship and hate crimes, oppression and removal of basic human rights eventually. Adolf Hitler transformed Germany into a fascist state. All opposition to his Nazi philosophy was removed. The government controlled which textbooks would be used in schools, and teachers who disagreed were either terminated or sent to camps to become good Nazi's. All radio broadcasts and publications were monitored and controlled by the government. Then there was the systematic removal of what Hitler considered "unwanted" elements of society, such as Jews, which resulted ultimately in death camps and the holocaust. Hitler justified the holocaust by proclaiming that this "new Christianity" would usher in a thousand years of peace. Germans turned a blind eye, convinced that ethnic purity was in their best interest. They trusted their "strong leader", because he was making GERMANY GREAT AGAIN following hard times after World War I.
The fascist government is anti-union and anti-collective bargaining. It opposes the empowerment of the less empowered. It opposes a minimum wage. The fascist is against any socialist program, such as welfare, government assisted health care, social security, food stamps, etc. Fascists typically only accept their religion. A bible based theocracy, for example, which has been promoted and endorsed by many Republicans, especially during this 2016 election cycle. The fascist government must maintain military superiority and intimidation, backed by force. Killing or intimidating your political foes is much easier than dealing with principled Congress or electorate. Fascism cannot survive over the long-haul. It's merely a matter of how many will die before it fails.
EVERY ELECTION MUST BE HONORED AND CHERISHED THROUGH PARTICIPATION
In addition to November 8th, check your local election dates, some of which happen on strange dates in the spring, summer and fall of off years. Also, ask your friends and families to mark mid-term election date in their calendar, which is currently on November 6th of 2018. ALL 435 House of Representatives members will be up for election once more, and with good voter turnout, we can gain a strong Democratic majority, but....you have to either show up, or accept the consequences when Republicans gain seats back and then rub your nose in it.
2020 CENSUS
Whichever party is in power at the state level has the ability to re-draw congressional districts in their state. This is done from census data taken every 10 years. In 2000 and 2010, Republicans dominated most legislatures at the state level, which is the cause of the corrupt and anti-American practice of gerrymandering. Currently, in most states, two thirds (2/3) of the voters can vote Democrat, yet Republicans gain seats in the House of Representatives. EVERY VOTER WHO SHOWS UP AT THE POLLS IN 2016 must show up at the polls in 2018 and again in 2020 in order for this fraud to be reversed, and congressional districts return to a more fair drawing of congressional borders.
Our nation broke away from Great Britain due to taxation without representation combined with an oppressive government. Millions of Americans have died protecting our right to vote, and our right to have our vote count. This has been decimated over the last couple of decades, and we are at fault. At fault for viewing state and local elections as less important than a Presidential election, and failing to show up. What we received in return for not voting is a Republican government which works hard at harming the middle and lower class while making sure billionaires, oil profiteers and weapons manufacturers get massive amounts of government assistance ( corporate welfare ) and legally evade taxes.
We can blame them for many of the problems of the nation, but if you did not vote in 2014, you have no alternative but to blame yourself as well. This can be reversed. IT'S SIMPLE.
" Don't boo.... just VOTE! "
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