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    Super Moderator Newmexican's Avatar
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    Missouri Legislator, Says Voter ID Bill Wouldn't Disenfranchise Troops

    Shane Schoeller, Missouri Legislator, Says Voter ID Bill Wouldn't Disenfranchise Troops

    John Celock
    04/12/2012

    A Republican lawmaker in Missouri denied that his bill to require proof of citizenship in order to register to vote also contains a provision that would prevent military members stationed outside the state to vote by absentee ballot.

    House Speaker Pro Tem Shane Schoeller, a Republican candidate for Missouri secretary of state, said a St. Louis Post-Dispatch editorial, posted on STLToday.com, wrongly summarized portions of the bill, currently pending in the Republican-controlled Missouri House. The bill contains a requirement to show a birth certificate or other proof of citizenship to register to vote and promotes use of photo identification for absentee ballot applications. Schoeller said he is not trying to stop people from voting.

    "Clearly the St. Louis Post Dispatch did not read the bill," Schoeller told HuffPost. "There is no intention to deny people the ability to mail in a ballot. They are going to give us time to respond on Tuesday to correct the record."

    The editorial has sparked sharp criticism from Democrats and a national veterans political group.

    "We wholeheartedly oppose your legislation (House Bill 2109) that would restrict the voting rights of troops who are deployed or stationed overseas, by limiting their ability to vote via absentee ballot," Jon Soltz, the chairman of VoteVets.org, wrote to Schoeller. "We feel that the idea that you would deliberately inhibit our service members from exercising the very freedoms they fight for is offensive, un-American, and wrong."

    Soltz wrote in his letter that 11,000 military members voted absentee in 2008 and noted that on Schoeller's campaign website he said one of his goals is to support military voting. Missouri's secretary of state is the state's chief elections officer.
    The leading Democrat in the secretary of state race, state Rep. Jason Kander, also opposes the proposal.

    "Every eligible voter deserves the opportunity to participate in our democracy, but none more so than those that fight to protect it," said Kander, an Afghanistan War veteran. "At a time when we should be making it easier for military men and women abroad to vote, Speaker Schoeller's bill would make it next to impossible."

    Schoeller's proposal calls for photo identification to be used when requesting an absentee ballot or for a copy of a photo ID to be mailed with a ballot. He said this would allow for a crackdown on fraud, which he said has occurred in other states. While Schoeller has said he has not seen any documented cases of such fraud in Missouri, he is concerned that if voter identification laws are put into place in the state for in-person voting, there will be a surge in absentee ballot fraud.

    The legislation contains provisions to allow troops in combat zones to fax or email ballots to Missouri officials. It also notes that troops can use any type of envelope to mail in a ballot.

    Schoeller said the proof of citizenship clause makes sure that only citizens are registering to vote. Under the bill, voters would need to bring a birth certificate or another document to prove citizenship. State and local election officials would need to verify the documents

    "Colorado did this recently and they had 11,000 illegal aliens in the state and 4,000 registered to vote," Schoeller said. "You may have someone here legally, but only a citizen has the right to vote."

    Schoeller said the birth certificate requirement has nothing to do with unfounded claims that President Barack Obama was not born in the U.S. The Missouri House last week passed a bill requiring presidential candidates to produce a birth certificate to the Missouri secretary of state. Schoeller said he supports that bill, but believes Obama was born in the U.S.
    Shane Schoeller, Missouri Legislator, Says Voter ID Bill Wouldn't Disenfranchise Troops


    The skinny on VoteVets.org


    VoteVets.org is a left-wing liberal political action committee and 501c tax-exempt organization that promotes progressive politics, especially with regard to U.S. foreign policy; specifically, military affairs. A front group for the Democrat Party, it was formed in 2006 over opposition to President George W. Bush policy in Iraq. Their stated mission reads, "which primarily helps elect Iraq and Afghanistan war veteran candidates and educates about veterans and military issues aimed at influencing the outcome of the next election." [1] VoteVets operates the Vote Vets Action Fund. They want the world and the IRS to believe these are two separate and distinct organizations. VoteVets is immersed in the left-wing sphere of influence such as the Americans Against Escalation in Iraq coalition. [2] Associations and primary fundraisers include Democrats the DCCC, AFL-CIO and SEIU labor unions, the Center for American Progress, MoveOn.org, Media Matters for America, many other Shadow party/George Soros backed organizations such as democratic donors and operatives Fund for America, run by John Podesta. [3] Co-Founder and Chairman Jon Soltz, an Iraq War veteran, became involved in politics by volunteering for Massachusetts Senator John Kerry's failed presidential bid in 2004. VoteVets claims 95,000 members. [4]


    The VoteVets advisory board

    Jon Soltz, General Wesley K. Clark (ret.), Major General Paul D. Eaton (ret.), Bob Kerrey, Tammy Duckworth, Paul Hackett, Richard Beattie, Bill Belding, Leslie H. Gelb, Elaine Kamarck, Lawrence Korb, William E. Little, Lawrence E. Penn III, Edward Vick,
    Election cycle

    During the 2006 mid-term elections, the group spent roughly $2 million trying to get liberal Democrats elected into office by going after numerous Republican politicans. [5] Senators targeted by the VoteVets.org campaign included: spending $45,000 on ads targeting George Allen, also Rick Santorum, Conrad Burns, and Jim Talent.
    A 2007 New York Times article published about Gen. Batiste in Iraq, making a television ad denouncing Bush for VoteVets. As a news correspondent, his employer CBS News wasn't pleased that he earned $500,000. from VoteVets. Batiste attacked a sitting President during war,
    You continue to pursue a failed strategy that is breaking our great Army and Marine Corps. I left the Army in protest in order to speak out. Mr. President, you have placed our nation in peril. Our only hope is that Congress will act now to protect our fighting men and women.
    His role was either diminished or Batiste retired from VoteVets. [6]
    In mid-2008, VoteVets.org began airing ads attacking veteran and former Vietnam POW, Senator John McCain during his failed presidential bid. The scam of it all is that VoteVets attacked McCain a veteran, while 'non-armed forces' candidate Barack Obama gets VoteVets full support.

    In 2009, VoteVets political television ads appeared promoting a candidate and an environmental agenda. Environment is a DNC promoted issue and VoteVets stated goal is to be military centric, which is deceitful.
    Former Democratic presidential candidate, VoteVet TV spokesman retired Gen. Wesley Clark, made huge errors and incorrect battlefield assessments regarding VoteVets views on Iraq and the War on Terror. He undermines our nation lying, "Because of Iraq, there are more terrorists in the world.", he doubted our brave men and women in uniform, he doubted a real difference-maker General Petraeus. Just like the entire VoteVets organization, Clark and the Democrats were all wrong when they politically positioned themselves against the U.S.-led Iraq military Surge.

    False Ads

    The group repeatedly creates headlines by providing false stories, which both Democrats and Republicans blame each other, point fingers of fault. An example would be a story about body armor that democrat-led FactCheck points out that VoteVets utilized a “a nasty tactic" [7] and democrat-led MediaMatters (a VoteVets fundraiser) disputes all allegations.

    2012
    VoteVets being a liberal organization, will not take Barack Obama to task for military action in Libya, Afghanistan, and other African countries. They have put together opposition to Rush Limbaugh, demanding his censorship and removal from the Armed Forces Radio network, [8] even though the military said they will not remove Rush.

    VoteVets.org - Conservapedia
    Support our FIGHT AGAINST illegal immigration & Amnesty by joining our E-mail Alerts at https://eepurl.com/cktGTn

  2. #2
    Senior Member Kiara's Avatar
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    "Colorado did this recently and they had 11,000 illegal aliens in the state and 4,000 registered to vote," Schoeller said. "You may have someone here legally, but only a citizen has the right to vote."

    4,000 illegals voting and that is just in Colorado!

  3. #3
    Super Moderator Newmexican's Avatar
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    In the 2010 senatorial election Bennett, the Democrat, won by less than 1000 votes.
    Support our FIGHT AGAINST illegal immigration & Amnesty by joining our E-mail Alerts at https://eepurl.com/cktGTn

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