Kansas Gov. Sebelius Vetoes Voter ID Law
By SilentPatriot Monday May 19, 2008 5:00pm
The always-impressive KS Governor Kathleen Sebelius vetoed a bill that would disenfranchise untold numbers of voters by requiring them to show photo identification before casting their ballots. Expect more states to attempt to implement these draconian laws now that the Supreme Court paved the way.
“Additionally, no elected official should support enacting new laws discouraging or disenfranchising any American who has been legally voting for years....HB 2019 seeks to solve a problem of voter fraud which does not exist in our state due to the tireless efforts of our local election officials."
As Bill W. mentioned earlier, the Great Threat posed to our democracy by "voter fraud" is virtually non-existent. The thousands of people who would lose their ability to vote, however, is very real.
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Good on her.
Awesome! Well done! Good, smart statement by her, too.
Possible Obama running mate?
whooray...
she'd make a great VP
Kathleen for VP!
Please don't take her away from Kansas to be Obama's running mate. Kansans need her level-headedness as a brake upon the many yahoos in the Kansas legislature who toe the Bush-Cheney radical right agenda.
Damned wonderful and she's a female too. This is the kind of stand up woman I would listen to and I already admire.
Obama/Sebelius '08
Unbeatable.
It isn't the VOTER committing the fraud. It is what happens to the vote after it is cast. Go after those people. Fat chance.
Holy cow, who would have thought that there are signs of intelligence in Kansas. Amazing. Maybe there is hope for America after all!
I'd like to continue to think of Sebelius as a terrific Finnish composer. Also a great candidate for VP, I'm sure.
Took a pretty lady to show the Democratic party what true "balls" are .........
This is the best news I`ve heard in months.Governor Sebelius is a great person who comes from a long line of very talented and honorable political people(John Gilligan,former Governor of Ohio is her father).I admire her.We need more like her to recover from the Criminal Bush machine.
i like her for a running mate but.....
is she really going to add to the campaign, besides being female, and a populist, and uber hot? i'll take her over jim webb!!
This is what Hilary could have been. Sadly, she chose the Dark Side.
Sebelius is awesome. It's to bad she is relatively unknown and her accomplishments and successes remain obscure to the General Public.
I can't think of any other person in Government who can as effectively bring both working class people and "elites" together and get them working together on things that need to be done for everyones benefit.
What a great governor. Maybe there is nothing the matter with Kansas afterall.
Well, maybe a little...
DMS @ 3:
Tempting, but she's needed where she is. I highly doubt that Kansas has run out of Creationist whackjobs to run for the State Education Board. Her Lieutenant Governor (who ditched the GOP to be her running mate in the last election, IIRC) would be an interesting possibility, though...
They will implement National I.D. which will replace this voter I.D. Again window dressing giving the people the illusion they good folks out there are gonna make a difference.
Bush will attack Iran just before the end of his term and will call a state of emergency and institute martial. There will be no 2008 election.
You'll see. It sounds good though and it makes the people of this country feel like something is getting done.
Now that is good representation.
Darrell Kern @ 18:
Sitting around gnawing ones finger nails off waiting isn't going help anything.
DMS @ 3:
Long shot. She's not into "power politics".
I don't think she or anyone could deliver Kansas for a Democrat so I wouldn't go to her as VP.
I still think Jim Webb is easily the strongest VP candidate. Plus he's got the gov waiting in the wings for his seat.
Good for you, Gov. Sibelius. At first thought, I couldn't understand why Kansas would want such a law since it is overwhelmingly white Republican, but having just recently re-read What's the Matter with Kansas, I think they are going after their Latino work force.
Chris Gamble @ 22:
No Reaganites thank you.
gffish @ 6:
Amen
I think that voter fraud, if proved, is a serious issue that ought to be addressed. That being said, we Americans need to ask: "What's more important, the five to twenty people who might have defrauded the system or the five to two hundred thousand plus who might be disenfranchised by such state laws? My old German grandmother would have had an extremely hard time proving to the state that she was born (except by showing up at the polling place), even though she was a loyal and proud American citizen for most of her life. She took her right to vote seriously and would have been devastated had she been denied the opportunity to do so. I'm glad she didn't live to see what has transpired since her death. She would be very sad and very ashamed.
L.A. Confidential @ 24:
All the better
gffish @ 6:
Please don’t take her away from Kansas to be Obama’s running mate. Kansans need her level-headedness as a brake upon the many yahoos in the Kansas legislature who toe the Bush-Cheney radical right agenda.
Amen
Amen, amen. I heard rumor she was considering a run for Brownback(side)'s Senate seat once her term is up.
A kinder, gentler Hillary.
Chris Gamble @ 27:
Uhh you do know Webb worked in the Reagan Administration right?
Way to go Gov. You are a TRUE American Hero!
Gov. Sebelius is also addressing global warming at the state level and has cancelled coal-fired plant proposals. Finally, some real progressives instead of corpocrat DLC diet republicans.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/03/22/tech/main3959971.shtml
If Jim Webb is a Reaganite, how is Hillary not a Goldwater Girl? The running mate must have defense credentials to go after McCain and his faux expertise. McCain messed up again today.
http://www.time-blog.com/swampland/2008/05/mccains_savannah_press_confer...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ilan-goldenberg/another-foreign-policy-ga_...
I wrote to three representatives in the Kansas legislature who support this legislation asking them if they could point to an incident of voter fraud in Kansas. The only one who responded with one case was a case in Missouri.
The only instance of voting fraud that I'm aware of is former Attorney General Phill Kline voting outside his district. He is currently serving as an unelected district attorney.
Chris Gamble @ 27:
There is nothing "better" about anyone who worships Ronnie Retard ; easily one of the worst presidents in US history , and the beginning of the GOP's ultimate attempt at revisionist history..........
Good grief - a Democrat with a spine!
What planet does she come from?
yellow dog @ 35:
Oz
L.A. Confidential @ 36:
She's not in Kansas anymore?
Governor Sebelius is doing what needs to be done to maintain the voting rights in her state. This is a Governor who stands up for the people in her state, and one can only hope that other Governors will follow her lead.
Voter ID is intended to do one thing and one thing alone, to block hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of votes from being cast and counted...votes that one side does not want the other side to have.
liberalbiasboy @ 38:
Ouch.
liberalbiasboy @ 37:
LOL just kidding KansOz is a unusual place. Many people don't realize that Kansas was once a hotbed of the left-wing Populist movement in recent times. Then Reaganomics hit.
L.A. Confidential @ 41:
The proverbial "stuff" hitting the fan........
Doug @ 34:
Well, don't you know how important it is to keep Missourians from voting in Kansas elections? If one Missourian can figure out how to do it, the others will all say, "Show Me!" Next thing you know, you have anarchy and human/animal hybrids.
the gop reichwingneocons don't win elections
they manipulate or steal them.
Sebelius for VP? That'd be a huge waste of talent. Give it to Billary instead.
How are the republican's ever going to steal elections anymore, if this type of legislation isn't inacted?
always-impressive KS Governor Kathleen Sebelius
Hey, I'm proud of her too, but always-impressive? Did ya'll miss the bill she let pass that allowed folk to by dangerous arms like semi-autos?
KS Governor Kathleen Sebelius for VP?
(Most) of you dooo-goooders, need a lesson in politices. No.1 I live in Kansas, and a 76 year old strong Democrat, and she (this Governer) hasn't done sh-t in Kansas. On a scale of 1-10, she's about 2 in rating for anything. I hope she gets picked for VP. Obama/Sebelius will lose to a great nooo=goooder (McPain) by 24 %. 60-36 votes.
BTW, the photo of Gov. Sebelius was taken about 25 years ago. She's no spring chicken.
You should see her latest photo.
The website sited in the article has a comment section that demonstrates how silly some of the Kansas electorate is. Also note that the voting system for comments is COMPLETELY open and doesn't need any registration....;)
Ezgotxtman @ 49:
I have to ask you. Do you have a republican legislature? The block everything in the U.S. Senate and house, why would they do anything different in your state?
Ron says..
I have to ask you. Do you have a republican legislature? The block everything in the U.S. Senate and house, why would they do anything different in your state?
Reply...
One of the strongest republican legislatures among the 50 states. At least they(republicans) have tried to work with her and pass bills good for the people of Kansas, but, she's vetoed all of the good ones. This bill (HO 2019)she just vetoed was do to the cost of the bill to take effect.
Gretchen @ 5:
I'll second this suggestion.
Ezgotxtman @ 53:
"One of the strongest republican legislatures among the 50 states" ; you could have simply said a worthless piece of shit , because it is the same thing anyway .........
Kansas Gov. Sebelius Vetoes Voter ID Law
BRAVO!
Lucy @ 47:
Uhh, you know what semi-automatic means right? It means one pull of the trigger for one shot. Most handguns made since the 20th century are semi-auto, it'd be kind of hard to find one that isn't. I don't think this is a big deal at all (although I am probably more moderate than most people on C&L on this issue).
Greg Abbott, AG for Texas, got all fired up about "rampant voter fraud". After 2 years and a 1.4 million dollar grant he found 26 cases to prosecute. Voter fraud is code for intimidate old people and harass anybody you can.
she should definitely be on the vp short list
there is a woman who wont take any shit from the repugs, and would be a great attack dog
and after obama's 8 years in office....can you all say President Sebelius?
boy, that would make hillary's head explode
Ezgotxtman @ 53:
You mean the constant attempt by the Republicans to pass legislation to build more coal plants despite the fact 2/3's of Kansans are opposed to the plants? Or the bills to strip members of the Kansas Department of the Environment of all their authority to do their jobs? Or the constant legislation to prohibit abortion in the state?
The Republicans haven't passed any meaningful legislation. That's why Republicans have left the party and joined the Democratic party like Lt. Gov. Parkinson or former attorney general Paul Morrison.
The fact is the Kansas legislature is completely dominated by Republicans. The Republicans have such a huge majority in the House that if two Democrats switch over then the Republicans have enough votes to override any veto.
Sebelius still has a large approval rating compared to nuts like Neufeld who are paid off by the coal companies.
good on her. sebelius for VP
good on her. sebelius for VP.
OBAMA/SEBELIUS 08...nice ring to it!
Good job. She's a brave woman and she did the right thing.
*
The democrats should not take any important Governor's or Senator's (like Webb) in states that could replace them with repukes - in order to fill the V.P. slot. There are plenty of excellent choices for our party (like Wesley Clark), and we will need all of our Senator's to put down repuke obstructionism in 09'.
That's my Gov. :^)
IMHO she's badass. Don't even think you can push her around, cuz you can't.
She also stood up to big coal and their Republican majority patsies who wanted to allow another coal plant that would be spewing its pollution here but sending its power out of state. She vetoed them over and over and they lost.
Sebelius’ coal veto stands: Lawmakers fall short in override attempt
http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2008/may/02/sebelius_coal_veto_stands/?city...
Kansas Governor's Third Coal Plant Veto Sustained
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/may2008/2008-05-01-094.asp
We've already got several big wind farms here and she's fighting for more, and it looks like she's going to win that too. This is still a Republican state with solid GOP majorities in both houses but she easily coasted to a second term. Everybody here that I know, Democrat or Republican, voted for her.
I hope and pray Obama picks her for his VP. She's perfect.
Ezgotxtman @ 50:
You mean her photo-spread a couple months ago in Vogue magazine?
Sebelius fashion portrait unveiled in latest Vogue
http://primebuzz.kcstar.com/?q=node/9560
She still looks mighty fine to me. Your eyes are apparently as deficient as your grey matter.
i'm as much a liberal as anyone, but someone please tell me what's so wrong with having to prove who you claim to be when it comes to something as important as voting? what kind of responsible person gets along in life without some sort of photo id? i mean really. if your life is so messed up to the point where you can't even secure yourself a photo id, you're probably not bothering to vote in the first place. voter id laws do not equate to disenfranchisement. if anything, it's a safeguard against voter fraud.
i think she would make a FAR better first female president than hillary. she would do ALL women proud, not just a few figurehead worshipers.
I hope Obama is looking at her as a VP running mate.
Ben @ 67:
OOPS...I agree with Ben
that's right!! we're not your dad's kansas anymore.
Next election all candidates will be required to show Identification birth certificate, State ID, Government ID and anything else we can come up with and they must show these at all campaign stops I think that would be fun
She's my gov. She's been a staunch opposer to the GOP on the typical nonsense, and has shown bipartisanship.
That said, she has GOT to work on her public speaking. And as others have mentioned, there is no way in hell she carries this state, not that our whopping 6 electoral votes would have much effect anyway.
Her response to Bush's SOTU = meh.
Sweet Chunks @ 74:
This seems to be the biggest criticism around Democratic camps about Gov. Sebelius- she was too nice or didn't bite enough when she gave the State of the Union Rebutal. What would that solve though?
It might make us already on the left feel a little more sure of ourselves, but it will just push back against those in the middle and on the right.
She absolutely went after Bush"s policies, but did so in a way that some of our better posters here do; by that I mean that she didn't give the opposition something to be angry at, or attack her personally for, but made it so that only the actual policy issues could be debated. That is a debate the Dems will win every time.
I don't know how many of those that criticise her for being "too nice" saw Faux Noise after her rebuttal, but if they had, they would have seen Brit Hume looking absolutely stunned. He couldn"t counter her arguments on the facts of the issues, but more importantly, had no openings to get his little digs in either.
Sebelius left a Faux talking head speechless, that is no small task. In fact, I've seen only one other person on this election cycle with the ability to do that; let's have them both on the ticket. Seeing Fume's face, after she spoke- that"s when I decided I wanted her to be Obama(well, Kucinich at the time)'s VP
A little help for Ben. Before the newnew legislative throbthrill for picture ID requirements to vote, one's signature was sufficient in, I believe, all states. Now that picture IDs are becoming a requirement (which all the opponents tell us that 15-20% of the eligible population cannot produce), would one expect to not have to sign a document to receive a ballot? Well, expect differently, because the old requirement of a signature has not been repealed. This leaves the question: if a signature is still required, why is the additional proof-of-identity necessary?
Y'know, by contractual agreement, retailers can only look at your signature to approve a credit card purchase. If it is good enough for a multinational corporation, why isn't it good enough for a polling place?
Yeah...LOVE Sebelius...Time Magazine was right to call her one of the top 5 governors in the US. I would go so far as to say best of the US. Great lady, went to high school with her kid. In fact, when Obama came to Topeka a couple of years ago to speak (the year before MR. Clinton), they were gettin' pretty chummy. Forget Obama/Hillary, start thinkin' Obama/Sebelius. Two odd names together. Finally...Hillary minus the evil. Anyways, Facebook has a group for Obama/Sebelius 2008 started WAY back when. Join it! My dad's in the photo with the potential ticket. I don't feel one bit bad about living in a red state like Kansas...
Ben @ 67:
What does giving the state money to take your picture have to do with being a "responsible" person? And how does having a photo ID prove that you're the person you say you are? A photo ID may not prove anything more than that you're a talented enough criminal to get piece of laminated plastic with your picture on it (and I'll bet you money that at least half of the kids age 18-21 that you talk to can find someone to get you a very legitimate looking ID).
Because it's a funny thing, you know. To get a state ID, you show a birth certificate - which doesn't have a picture. And you sign your name swearing that you are the person that you say you are. And you hand the state money. So why do you think that the steps of handing the DMV money to get a piece of plastic with your picture will somehow stop voter fraud?
cactusflinthead @ 58:
And of those 26 cases, 18 were legitimate votes cast by eligible voters, and the votes were counted. The people that were prosecuted had done nothing more than take the envelopes to the mailbox for the voter without signing the envelope. So Texas was able to find exactly EIGHT illegal votes after their search.
On the other hand, Indiana disenfranchised more eligible voters than that in one fell swoop when 12 elderly nuns were denied the right to vote earlier this month. They couldn't be allowed to vote because they didn't have valid ID. Some had expired passports, but that's not good enough (apparently your picture expires with the passport? Or maybe your citizenship expires?). So, despite the fact that these women are in their 80s & 90s, some are physically disabled, and none drive, they still have to go fork over money to the state for an ID card in order to exercise the voting rights that they've had for years.
Talk about a win/win - the state rakes in the money for the ID, and maybe those damned pesky old folks and low income folks will think it's too much trouble to find a way to get to the DMV and they won't bother to vote!
marie @ 10:
just the kind of smug comment which i have come to expect from closed-minded liberals.
we elected her when the other states were electing republicans, were you asleep? your kind of comment discourages me from wanting to share her with the rest of the country. you misjudge kansans. the rightwing christians were backed by east coast think tanks, removing the previously populous leaning repugs in precinct leadership. hate to tell you but it wasn't kansas which got us into this war. i moved here from the politically correct northwest, where your attitude flourishes. we're not perfect here, but you won't here the locals here dissing your state, more likely they will say something like "i hear it's real pretty there, i had a cousin that moved there" or "i was stationed out there and really enjoyed it." when i told my friends i was moving here, all i got was an astonished "kaaan-sas!!" how open-minded of my socalled liberal friends.
i guess i can't edit my above comment, but just so's you know, i am politically to the left of most of the liberal friends i left behind in wa state, and probably the leftest in my county. i am a visible minority here, long hair, hippie looking, ethnic clothed, artisan, and we were 'outed' when we ended up not only on a wichita news program having been with cindy sheehan in the ditches, but on cnn marching in dc after that. we have demystified the peace activist profile in our little town. have been here 9 years, now. we have had locals confide in us that they no longer support bush and his war. they trust us, and know we are here for the long haul. solid taxpaying citizens, we, who have a funky yard, but aren't scary. peace
to no. 67 called Ben--
Dear boy,
In this life one soon learns to see if you "have a problem?", before putting out a solution. Saves time and money. The evidence indicates we have voting machine fraud and crooked officials who are stealing votes. Why not work on this side of the equation rather than demanding ID from each voter. We have gotten by without making like Russia or Fascists for over 200 years. What is the reason for starting now on having interior passports?
You know, I just started my research about possible VP canidates so I can make informed comments. Here is an uninformed one to the gent that said she was "no spring chicken". I love the fact that she chooses to look her age. Do you think Hil is a blond or Pelusi is a brunette.
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