Things are not looking up, Michigan. The presidential recount, controversial from the get-go, was stopped last night, as you likely already know. We hope to hear more about this soon from DoReMI and other local Kossacks who participated in it. But the biggest immediate threat is that the lame-duck GOP legislature is happily running through as much of their reactionary, extremist agenda as they can squeeze in.
The latest destructive legislation to pass from the House to the Senate attacks democracy from a number of different perspectives. HB 4630 and 4643 are a pair of anti-union, anti-First Amendment bills that make it easier for companies to hire scabs and that increase penalties for “unlawful mass pickets.” Even more immediately damaging to the concept of small-d democracy, under which the ability to vote should be protected and encouraged, a trio of bills related to Voter ID requirements is now under review in the Senate.
House Bill 6066 would amend the Michigan Election Law to change the procedure for a voter who is unable to produce photo identification at the polling place. Currently, if a person is unable to produce photo ID, but is on the voter registration list, the person will be able to sign an affidavit to that effect and vote as usual (unless challenged); a person who does not produce ID and is not on the voter rolls may submit a provisional ballot, which will be processed as a challenged ballot. Under the bill, all voters who are unable to produce appropriate ID would sign an affidavit and be issued a provisional ballot.
At the moment, people without ID can sign an affidavit and vote a regular ballot. Changing that to a provisional ballot means for most people in that circumstance either additional inconvenience, in the form of a return visit to show a forgotten ID, or the failure of their vote to be counted in the final tally. The associated bills are supposed to mitigate the expense of obtaining state ID, but they do not (and cannot) address the costs for obtaining out-of-state documentation.
For those Kossacks who live in or have friends and family living in districts with Republican state senators, it’s more critical than ever for you to CALL THEM to express your disagreement with the spirit and impact of all of this proposed legislation. For a list of ALL the Michigan State Senators and their contact numbers, in case you don’t know what they are, please see this link.
For all of us, it’s past time for us to put our energies to work for progressive causes in the most effective and far-reaching ways we can imagine. Charlie Pierce often likes to close his weekly review of state-based GOP shenanigans — which includes today a h/t to our “invaluable Electablog (sic)” — with “This is your democracy, America. Cherish it.” How many more chances will we have to demonstrate just how devoted we are?
Please help us build this weekly Michigan thread so that it includes any information relevant to turning MI Blue again that you would like me to highlight. MI contributors are always welcome! You can reach me through kosmail at peregrine kate. Or say hi through email here: peregrinekate@gmail.com And please follow me on Twitter @peregrinekate
Please feel free to drop in on ANY State Open Thread! So far, we have these regulars:
Colorado: Wednesdays, 6:00 PM Mountain
Michigan: Thursdays, between 7:00 — 8:00 PM Eastern
North Carolina: Sundays, 1:00 PM Eastern