The push toward obtaining a real id came after the 9/11 Commission met to help prevent future terrorism. To address that need to set standards for identification with that one goal in mind, Congress passed the REAL ID Act in 2005. However, the focus has also been used politically to suddenly question the legality of how we vote when it was never questioned in all the years of our democracy.
I am so tired of hearing about real id is needed because dead people are voting. Before voting by mail, people went to the polls that we were assigned to. Once there, we had to give our name to the poll worker where one pulled out your card and address. Another worker marked your name in that book for that particular election before ripping out the card to give another poll worker to rip apart off while you kept the other and went to the machine to vote. Dead people cannot go to their polling place and go through that same thing and also return with voting stubs. It is impossible, but this stupid idea keeps circulating.
Other people complain about voting by mail is so horrible because it also creates fraud. Give me a break. Voting by mail requires proving your identity before the state issues a voter that privilege just like voting in person. In addition, voting by mail is easier instead of keeping polling places open. It also is more efficient, less expensive for the state and federal governments just having it solely done that way, and especially more convenient for those where transportation is a problem as well as to save time or for those that are elderly or too ill to go in person.
Issuing a real id just for the sake of voting is yet another political move when the demographics aren’t working in your favor.
Another thing that you need to wonder about is, will we need a separate real id if moving to a new state that has a different card? Perhaps, if a real id is that necessary then it should be the same for the whole country not vary by state. I can say the same about the electoral college, which I think should be eliminated instead of worrying about real id.
It just astounds me from what stemmed out of the need to prevent future terrorism is now invading our rights to question the legality of our citizens? Something is wrong with this picture.
