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| The Discrimination Commission [hypocrite Mary Frances Berry] ^ |
Posted on 06/20/2002 7:25:11 AM PDT by FreeTally
Election reforms get more review
Key characters will skip state briefing
By Bill Cotterell
DEMOCRAT SENIOR WRITER
Some major players in Florida's 2000 post-presidential drama won't be on hand as the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights reconvenes today to assess election reforms.
Top Republicans, including Secretary of State Katherine Harris, see the commission's Miami "briefing" as a partisan opportunity to bash Gov. Jeb Bush and the GOP. But Leon County Elections Supervisor Ion Sancho welcomes a chance to troubleshoot new laws that did away with dangling chads and mandated uniform recount methods for all 67 counties.
After two days of hearings in Tallahassee and one in Miami last year, the commission issued a report that said black voters were much more likely than whites to have their votes disqualified. The report also cited widespread procedural and registration problems that the Civil Rights Commission said disproportionately affected minority voters.
"The election-reform measures signed into law by Gov. Jeb Bush have the potential to rectify many of the problems noted in our report," said Chairwoman Mary Frances Berry. "However, there are significant concerns that were not addressed by the legislation. We want to get a sense of what's working, what's not, and what more can be done."
Bush, Harris, Elections Division Director Clay Roberts and Attorney General Bob Butterworth aren't going to Miami today. Bush had a legal aide reply to the commission's invitation with a terse note, saying county elections supervisors can explain law changes, while Harris was openly derisive of Berry.
Butterworth is attending a legal conference in Pennsylvania. Bush said he didn't even know the commission was coming back to Florida. Roberts declined comment, and his boss, who is running for Congress in Southwest Florida, had her spokesman issue a statement - sending the Civil Rights Commission her nonregrets.
"Last year, Chairperson Mary Frances Berry's utter disregard for due process and the truth destroyed the commission's credibility ... ," said David Host, an aide to Harris. "Thus, the Florida Department of State will not participate in any proceeding over which Chairperson Berry presides."
Berry recently went to court in an unsuccessful effort to block President Bush's appointment of conservative Cleveland lawyer Peter Kirsanow to the commission. Her agency, which exists to investigate discrimination, was recently ordered by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to pay a former employee $160,000 in a ruling that said Berry retaliated against the Hispanic woman for filing a complaint with the EEOC.
Commission member Abigail Thernstrom and a Washington aide to Kirsanow said Berry stacked today's agenda with witnesses such as state Sen. Kendrick Meek, D-Miami, Florida NAACP President Adora Obi Nweze and ACLU project director Charles Elsesser.
Politics may be reason for return
Thernstrom said she got short notice of the Miami hearing and has prior appointments in Washington today. But she said there could be politics in Berry's decision to return to Florida.
"That's my suspicion, but I have no smoking gun," she said. "It would seem to me that if you want to assess the election reforms, the time to do that is after the elections. The commission has done an abysmal job in Florida so far."
Sancho said he's going to Miami to talk elections - not politics. He said the state has made a good effort but hasn't fixed everything.
"The state has put itself in a box," said Sancho, who is on the witness list. "Probably the largest change has been in the area of technology, where 41 of 67 counties have junked their old systems. But some of the new systems are not installed yet.
"The newness of the technology, coupled with the reapportionment process, could lead to problems," he said. "As much as one-fourth of the precincts could change this fall, and the state has done a very poor job of recognizing the impact of redistricting on the process."
Sancho said the Legislature put up $24 million over two years to help counties with equipment changes, voter education, poll- worker training and other reforms to avoid a replay of the 36 days of recounts and court fights that followed President Bush's 537-vote victory. Gone are the punch-card voting machines and "butterfly ballots" that confused some voters. Recount procedures have been standardized in all counties.
The Civil Rights Commission is an independent agency that has no enforcement power but makes recommendations to Congress and the Justice Department.
University of Florida political science professor Richard Scher, who is scheduled to testify before the commission, said minority voters still find hurdles at the polls.
"The state needs to face up to the fact that, for whatever reason, there were awful snafus that disproportionately confronted African-American voters on that election day," Scher said. "This may be a dirty word in Florida, but the state needs to take 'affirmative' steps to make sure it doesn't happen again."
Yeah, that "voting only once" hurdle is so unfair.
There is a sure fire way, buddy, but you don't want to do it.
1) Purge all voting rolls after every election.
2) In most cases, people would have two years to register to vote before the next election. IF voting is that important, than the person will find time in the next two years to register.
3) A picture I.D. is required as proof of who you are to register and vote. No I.D., no vote, no exceptions.
4) Prosecute all vote fraud to the fullest extent of the law.
If you want on (or off) of my black conservative ping list, please let me know via FREEPmail. (And no, you don't have to be black to be on the list!)
Being unable to read, in any language, is also an unreasonably high hurdle many are unable to clear.Did you also forget the "I VOTE FOR NUMBER 2" crowd? talking about high hurdle for these peeple!!!
Thanks for the ping.
Number 2 happens.
I didn't know the NAACP had Jedis.
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