War hero, 91, set to be stricken from fla. Voter rolls
WAR HERO, 91, SET TO BE STRICKEN FROM ROLLS
Florida governor accused of targeting noncitizen voters
By Brittany wallman (Fla.) sun sentinel
12:01 a.m., May 30, 2012
Updated 5:39 p.m. , May 29, 2012
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Using an American war veteran as the face of their cause, two South Florida congressmen called on the governor Tuesday to immediately stop the state’s purge of the voter rolls.
In a separate move, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., sent a letter to the governor expressing his concerns about the voter purging.
Reps. Ted Deutch and Alcee Hastings, both Democrats, accused the Republican governor of using the roll cleanup as a ruse to disenfranchise voters in a presidential election year.
Sitting in the retirement village in Davie where he lives, Bill Internicola, 91, listened Tuesday as Deutch read from a piece of his recent mail:
“The Broward County Supervisor of Elections Office has received information from the state of Florida that you are not a United States citizen; however you are registered to vote.”
Internicola said at a news conference Tuesday he was amazed and a little insulted when he read the letter.
He earned the Bronze Star as an Army medic in the Battle of the Bulge, and was honored by France with its Chevalier Legion of Honour.
The lifelong Democrat was given 30 days to prove his citizenship or be stricken from the rolls. The letter he received was one of 2,600 sent to voters throughout the state in recent weeks to keep noncitizens from participating in elections.
Another 52,000 people possibly dead were identified by the state as active voters, and local elections offices are also purging them.
The targeting of noncitizens came directly from Gov. Rick Scott, The Associated Press reported last week, quoting former Secretary of State Kurt Browning.
Nelson, in his Friday letter, cited the Browning revelation and told Scott the public’s “confidence in the right to vote is essential in a democracy.”
He said he was concerned about what he called the governor’s “hunt” for noncitizens, after “signing one of the nation’s most controversial voting laws.”
The Republican-led Legislature last year overhauled election law, reducing early voting periods and tightening the rules for groups who register new voters.
Democrats at the time said the changes would disenfranchise minorities and young voters.
The partisan bickering underscores the tense political atmosphere of a presidential election year in Florida.
WAR HERO, 91, SET TO BE STRICKEN FROM ROLLS | UTSanDiego.com
