Summary:
Donald Trump has signed a far-reaching executive order that promises to fundamentally disrupt American voter registration processes, introducing measures so restrictive they could in effect disenfranchise millions of citizens if enacted.
Described by Will Scharf, the White House staff secretary, on Tuesday as “the farthest reaching executive action taken” in the nation’s history, the order represents the latest in a long list of assaults against immigration, but also on current voting systems.
The sweeping order amends the federal voter registration form to require proof of citizenship in order to vote. It demands documentary proof for citizenship such as a passport to be eligible to vote in federal elections, empowers federal agencies to cut funding to states deemed non-compliant and instructs the Department of Justice to prosecute what the White House paints as “election crimes”. All the executive orders Trump has signed so far Read more
The measure also seeks to block states from accepting mail-in ballots after election day, regardless of when they are mailed in.
Many of the provisions in the order are likely to be quickly challenged and are legally suspect. The US constitution explicitly gives states and Congress the authority to set the rules for election and does not authorize the president to do so.
“The short answer is that this executive order, like all too many that we’ve seen before, is lawless and asserts all sorts of executive authority that he most assuredly does not have,” said Danielle Lang, a voting rights lawyer at the non-profit Campaign Legal Center.
Republicans have long sought to add a citizenship to the federal form and been stymied by the courts. In a 7-2 decision in 2013, for example, the US supreme court said that Arizona could not require proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections. The power to set the requirements on the federal form is left to the bipartisan Election Assistance Commission. Courts have also blocked efforts to short-circuit efforts to add the question.
The order tracks with a controversial bill in Congress Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (Save) Act, which would require Americans to prove citizenship in person – a requirement that could immediately eliminate mail-in and online voter registration already across 42 states, as well as DC and Guam.
The funny thing is that this could be easily mitigated if the left reached out to their neighbors and helped each other get the IDs. This can become a great opportunity to organize.
No, it can’t. Passports take months to get and cost money, for example. Disenfranchisement of the poor.
Also, why would Trump stop here? Wannabe dictators never let opponents compete fairly. If you overcome this hurdle, he’ll just make another ruling designed to undercut your vote. That’s why we need to fight against all of his changes. The power grab itself is the existential threat, not the individual action.
Oh hey, look! I don’t have a Real ID or a Passport. I already can’t fly or enter federal buildings. Now I won’t be able to vote? They’re basically making it a requirement to have a Real ID or Passport to be considered a citizen at this point.
Millions of poor people are about to lose their U.S. citizenship is what this sounds like it’s coming to.
Democrats are fighting on the wrong side of this issue and have been for some time IMO. I think requiring them is 100% fine, but they should be fucking free.
Yeah, in all EU countries people get a national ID card when they’re in their teens and then get automatically added to the voter registry when they’re 18.
It’s mandatory to have an ID card and it’s provided for free.
For every election all I have to do is show up, show my ID card and cast my vote. It baffles me why it doesn’t work like this in the US and why is it even controversial.
(At least as far as I know, this is how it works in all EU countries)
It doesn’t work like this in the US in part because some consider it illegal under the first and fourth amendments for the federal government to mandate identification. This also ties back into the early history of identification documents in the us that sparked a lot of outrage.
At least in Germany, it’s not free to get an ID or passport.
Oh, is it? Even the first time you get it and renewals? I think those should be free.
So uh, only about half of Americans actually have active, valid passports.
So thats a neat trick to disenfranchise half the population, instantly.
I’m guessing the next thing will be to fire everyone involved in processing and issuing passports.
Even better than that, the Fed can nullify your passport at any time
Also DOGE cutting the workforce that would process things like this, ensuring that people have even more trouble getting proper documentation for voting.
[insert Andy Samberg saying “cool cool cool cool cool cool…”]
Oh fuck right.
Yeah, I guess basically all trans people are now inelligible to vote, along with… yeah, basically anyone with sufficient melanation that the government decides is an immigrant, for any reason.
… Yeah this is pretty fucking bad.
After bad faith testing the water like this over and over you should no longer be allowed to be president, seeing as you can’t follow the rules, the law, or the constitution. We can see what you’re doing. It should be over for him now.
“The short answer is that this executive order, like all too many that we’ve seen before, is lawless and asserts all sorts of executive authority that he most assuredly does not have.”
Yes. Agreed. How’s the whole shouting, “hey, this isn’t legal” working out so far? The key to having laws is also enforcing said laws. Not doing great on that part so far.
Hey, the Democratic leadership did more than shouting. They also approved the GOP budget for the next 6 months…
Don’t forget the paddles! They also “slammed” Trump by holding up paddles. So brave.
Slamming Trump? That’s a paddling.
Hey hey hey! Don’t forget giving a rubber stamp to Trump and his butt buddies slashing whatever they want to “””fix””” the deficit!
Well, it’s going to be hard to enforce when the courts rule against them. Because the states run the elections.
Many of his deranged executive orders are actually getting halted and reversed.
The president can’t suffer consequences for disobeying a judge (apparently), but his idiotic followers sure can.
This is illegal for a litany of reasons.
Barring transit delayed mail-in ballots is 100% the way these fucks will steal the next election.
I hope Vermont doesn’t deregister me - thankfully voting administration is done by the individual states so they’ll likely push back on the EO but I’m absolutely not going to fly to Burlington to prove my identity in person.
The move really synergizes with privatizing the USPS…
Solution:
Motor-voting registration in all states through the DMV. You already have to prove citizenship for Real ID. Make sure everyone getting a state ID is also registered to vote.
Then you do 100% vote by mail.
Republicans: “Wait, not like that…”
what you suggested has been a republican talking point. wisconsin republicans admitted that they forced it into state law because it results in fewer democratic voters being able to vote.
not everyone can afford to travel (thus not everyone needs a state ID). and many can’t get to a DMV without taking time off of work that their employers may not allow even if unpaid. and many can’t even physically get to a DMV in areas with poor or no public transit. but they still have the right to vote.
Have you tried getting a realID? It’s just as bad as getting a passport and costs a chunk of change. I’m pissed off states weren’t able to shut it down. Now you need a passport effectively to fly domestically.
I haven’t needed to because I already have both a passport and a passport card, but it’s really not that hard or expensive (at least, not here it’s not!)
The DMV already requires proof of citizenship even without Real ID, so that requirement didn’t change.
One of these:
U.S. passport or U.S. passport card
U.S. birth certificate issued by a state or local government
Certificate of Citizenship
Certificate of Naturalization
Consular Report of Birth Abroad
Permanent Resident Card
Employment Authorization Card
Foreign Passport with unexpired visa and valid I-94 issued by DHSProof of Legal Name:
Social Security Number (SSN):
Proof of Address:
TWO printed documents that show your current name and current residential (home) address.Bring $30 for the Real ID charge in addition to the other fees.
So a Drivers License is $64, a state ID is $47, a permit is $30. +$30 for Real ID.
$94 for a license with real ID.
We should subsidized that shit
How is it not a poll tax?
Yeah that’s why I called out it costs money.
Its also kinda similar to taxes, the US pretty much already knows all this info already, yet somehow we can’t manage to make elections easy and free.
Because you’re paying for the drivers license and the Real ID, the voter registration is a free add-on.
So, Colorado?
Oregon and Washington too. I think Utah too? Should be all states.
He can sign as many EOs as he wants, but until he goes through the process (as if he has the attention span and focus to), gets the votes through Senate and House to make this mandatory, this means dogshit.
Congress implicitly consents. There has been no push back from Congress on any of this, even stripping funding powers from Congress themselves.
He proved this train has no brakes, but we’re still accelerating. Just wait till his attacks on judges/the judicial branch really ramp up…
“Old charlie stole the handle, the train it won’t stop rolling and it won’t slow down.”
Just ignore the fucking thing. It isn’t a law. Don’t pretend it is one. Don’t try and interpret it. Just ignore it.
This is the answer. Why even act on these bullshit EO? Just ignore forever. Not like Trump will get his fat ass up to enforce.
The “enforcement” will be “blue states x, y, z did not follow this rule, so their electoral college votes are invalid and will not be accepted”.
Doesnt that make it harder for the majority of GOP voters to vote?
I guess the one piece of good news? (Gosh it’s fucking slim) is that if there is a Democratic president in the future they can mandate national voting by mail if the SC doesn’t injunction this bullshit.
I swear all he’s doing this is to distract the media attention!
Lemme get my auction card here… I’ll show em.
Will?
