AP Touts 'Nonpartisan' Group -- Headed by Clinton's Speechwriter

Photo of Tim Graham.
By Tim Graham (Bio | Archive)
January 24, 2008 - 09:39 ET

As long as we’re in the habit of wondering about those "nonpartisan" groups being touted by reporters, what about AP reporter Deborah Hastings writing about the fight over voter fraud and requiring voters to show some form of ID? As the Supreme Court considers an Indiana law, touted as the strictest law in requiring a photo ID, Hastings writes "If the law is upheld, voting rights advocates fear it will encourage conservative lawmakers across the country to enact equally restrictive measures."

Hastings repeatedly suggests the battle is between conservatives and nonpartisans. The prospect of the Supreme Court upholding Indiana "worries voters’ rights groups." Such as?

"If it's upheld, we're certainly concerned that these same issues will resurface" in other states, said Justin Levitt of the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University....

The Bush administration has endorsed the measure before the Supreme Court, saying it is necessary to prevent fraud — specifically, to prevent voters from impersonating someone else at the polls, according to an amicus brief filed by the U.S. Justice Department.

Yet nonpartisan organizations including the Brennan Center, which studies voter issues, know of no one in the country who has been prosecuted for such a crime. The federal government does not keep such statistics.

"There are tens of millions of people in this country who don't have this type of identification. It's hard for middle-class people to understand that," said Michael Waldman, the center's executive director.

But is the Brennan Center truly "nonpartisan"? Or is it more liberal and Democratic? Hastings never explained the simplest piece of biography to the reader: Michael Waldman was Director of Speechwriting for President Clinton from 1995 to 1999. He even wrote a book about it called POTUS Speaks. Before that, he worked for Ralph Nader.

Readers should notice that a "nonpartisan" label is a little weird for a group named after a liberal hero like Supreme Court Justice William Brennan. It ought to be a dead give-away that the reporter is engaged in the art of ideological camouflage.

(Hat tip to Im-a-U2-fan: how about that U2 in 3D?)

—Tim Graham is Director of Media Analysis at the Media Research Center


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No one has been prosecuted because there is no way to catch

January 24, 2008 - 09:59 ET by Dee Bunk

No one has been prosecuted because there is no way to catch them. Do they really expect the public to believe that no one has ever voted illegally? What a joke.

There is no good reason in the world to not require a picture ID when voting. Theres should also be a Federal database required to catch people registered in two states.

Here is the key:

January 24, 2008 - 10:14 ET by c5then

"There are tens of millions of people in this country who don't have this type of identification."

Gee, aren't there also tens of millions of illegal aliens in this country too? Could that be the same people?

There is no good, logical reason why it is not a requirement to show ID in order to cast a vote in ANY election.

The day that "politician" became a career choice is the day we started losing the Republic. Let's get it back! Alan Keyes '08.

"It's hard for

January 24, 2008 - 10:26 ET by kg

"It's hard for middle-class people to understand that"

These liberals are totally ignorant. Do they really believe that the middle
class is stupid? Of course they do! They believe that just because they have
been indoctrinated into the progressive ideal they are somehow enlightened.
Nothing could be further from the truth. The simple fact is that they have let
others dictate to them what they should believe. The majority of the middle
class can and does think for themselves. In fact, a great portion of the middle
class is far more intelligent that those in the news media and are also more intelligent than our elected lawmakers.

What's hard for the middle class to understand is why are these people
pushing so hard against protection from voter fraud. Anyone able to register to
vote is able to get an ID to vote.

Democrat voter fraud cases out-number Republicans easily by a 10-1 margin.
Democrats feel they need those phony votes to win elections.

Voter ID

January 24, 2008 - 10:41 ET by indianaconservative

In the Indiana Supreme Court hearings, the dems couldn't come up with ONE person that was disallowed to vote because of this law.  In fact, it was discovered that one of the main litigants was registered to vote in Indiana and Florida.  Not to mention that she also voted in Indiana after registering in Florida, Florida had her mailing address as Indiana, she has Florida license plates, and was claiming homestead deduction on both homes in both states at the same time.  The best part was when she claimed to be the victim.  It is really sad when it is easier to vote than use my credit card or rent a video.

Showing ID as a hardship

January 24, 2008 - 11:03 ET by redwood

How soft have we as a people become that the argument of showing ID as a 'hardship' is not laughed out of the room? Hardship? Try this one on for comparison:

"Collecting water is often the most time
consuming, yet important daily activity for women and young
girls in developing countries. In rural areas, they can spend
four to five hours per day gathering water, making it hard
for women to focus on other economic activities and for their
daughters to attend school. The weight of the water they carry
also exposes them to a greater risk of malnutrition, back problems,
and anemia."

And people tout that taking a bus downtown to get an ID is 'too hard' a task for someone to accomplish. Yeah. Right.

http://www.lifewater...

http://livingwater.t...

How come its ok to make it

January 24, 2008 - 13:50 ET by MrSnuggles

How come its ok to make it nigh impossible to get a concealed weapons permit, yet we cant have ONE TEENY TINY "restraint" on voting?

its so patently obvious that the dems WANT voter fraud to be a possibility, why isnt the media saying so? and if dems feel so horribly bad for these folks, why dont they go out and get them their IDs? they bus people around to the polls on voting day, why not bus them to the DMV also?

Ah, Tim.  Cut the girl some

January 24, 2008 - 15:34 ET by fitzfong

Ah, Tim.  Cut the girl some slack.  She works for AP which makes her a Clinton speech writer.