The state Legislature is trying to vote on a constitutional amendment that would require a state photo ID to vote. This is propertied to prevent voter fraud. The reason that it is attempted as a constitutional amendment is to bypass the governor’s offices input on this measure.

The people that are supporting this measure are some Republicans and the rest of the Conservative Republicans are going along, at least so far. I don’t understand why they want to track your every move? The reason given for a photo ID is so that unauthorized persons won’t be able to vote.

Minnesota has very low incidence of voter fraud, so why the photo ID. I think it is a backdoor way of getting everyone registered in a big data base. When you go to the Bank, won’t they ask for your state photo ID. Or a bar, or with your credit card, or when you buy shells for your gun? When everyone is required to have a photo ID, won’t it be a short step to nationalizing the photo ID, so the federal government can track you wherever you go? Why does the state want the means to track our every move? Of course, it could be a scheme to get more people on a list that the state could sell to some marketeer.

Who is going to pay for this intrusion on your life? Your city, county and state taxes. Yes, in the fact that extra people will have to be hired to process the IDs and no, you will have to pay an extra fee just to vote. Isn’t this poll tax?

For all the concerns for individual responsibility, this measure is just that the sponsors don’t trust your friends and neighbors to help you vote.

 

Al Jorgensen

Albert Lea