Jethro Thinks He Can Control Who Votes. He Can't

 

You wake up every blessed morning in Trump 2.0, check your pulse for a beat, and dial up the news. The news -- despite which nipple you suck from -- always proves pulse-quickening, like you've inadvertently ingested some hallucinatory mushroom. Jaw-dropping developments in government, or lack thereof, prompting out-loud profanity. Today the outrage was John F. Kennedy Junior's forcing the resignation of Dr. Peter Marks from the Food and Drug Administration. Marks is credited as the real architect behind the rapid development of the coronavirus vaccines (plural), and his resignation letter is a classic (also a doozy in the annals of fuck-you resignation letters).

What was the outrage yesterday? You're forgiven if you can't remember. The outrages come at us relentlessly, daily. I'm just coming to understand the Trump outrage of last Tuesday (March 25), when he signed ExecOrder "Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections." Among several other provisions in the order, Trump demanded that henceforth voter registration requires proof of citizenship. Under Sec.2(a)(ii), “documentary proof of United States citizenship” shall include a copy of: 

(A) a United States passport;

(B) an identification document compliant with the requirements of the REAL ID Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-13, Div. B) that indicates the applicant is a citizen of the United States;

(C) an official military identification card that indicates the applicant is a citizen of the United States; or

(D) a valid Federal or State government-issued photo identification if such identification indicates that the applicant is a United States citizen or if such identification is otherwise accompanied by proof of United States citizenship.

Do you see any mention of a birth certificate -- proof of birth, say, in a document filed by the Florence Nightingale Hospital, Dallas, Texas, or anywhere else earthly? No birth certificate allowed? He lists passports first, as though any Tom, Dick, or Harry has a passport for foreign travel and exotic adventures, and how many rural and working-class Americans lack any of those listed documents?

According to analysis by Dr. Andy Jackson, Director of the Civitas Center for Public Integrity at the John Locke Foundation, the proof of citizenship order applies only when people use the national mail voter registration form (a mail-in postcard). How many voters register via that postcard in North Carolina? Dunno. But according to Jackson, any voter may still register to vote via their own state Board of Elections forms, which aren't as preposterous as the Trump order. Jackson makes a revealing comment when pointing out that Trump's order can't affect people who register using the SBOE form: "If Trump had attempted that in his order, he would have been well outside his authority."

Well Outside His Authority

Trump's whole "Preserve and Protect" order is a joke of unconstitutional hilarities.

The U.S. Constitution is clear: Article 1, Section 4 dictates that only states and Congress can make or alter the “time, place, and manner” of holding federal elections. The president is bestowed with no such power. He isn't even mentioned in the chain of command. On its face, his order is shit fantasy. But it'll take courts to say so.

In the meantime, I'm indebted to Andy Jackson for his approximation of just how much of North Carolina's voting practice might end up impacted by Trump's attempt to control access:

What is the bottom line for North Carolina?

To comply with Trump’s executive order, North Carolina may have to:

• Require proof of citizenship from anyone registering to vote with a national mail voter registration form or a Federal Post Card Application.
• Stop using ballot marking devices, except as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act.
• Comply with voter registration list maintenance practices in the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act (there is debate over how well North Carolina does that).
• Only accept ballots received by election day.

There will be numerous lawsuits over some provisions of this order, so its final impact is unclear.