| "One of the guys that flew into the buildings in New | | | | establish identity. The employer-sanctions law |
| York had voted in Florida," said Rep. Adam Putnam | | | | adopted in 1986 to deter employment of illegal aliens |
| (R-FL), December 17, 2001. Commenting on how | | | | allows a voter registration card to be used to |
| helpful the U.S. is to illegal aliens, he added, "You are | | | | establish employee identity - that plus a Social |
| told you are entitled to public assistance, then asked | | | | Security card is sufficient to establish work eligibility. |
| if you want to register to vote - if you think that | | | | Compounding the potential for corrupting our election |
| registering is tied to getting assistance, or getting | | | | process by non-citizen voting is another offshoot |
| your driver's license, or getting employment, you are | | | | from the 1993 National Voter Registration Act - |
| going to agree. Think about it," he said. | | | | absentee voting, which has become commonplace. |
| The essence of American Democracy - the pinnacle | | | | This has offered critical opportunity for intentional |
| achievement of various approaches to human | | | | voter fraud: election officials cannot challenge a |
| governance - arrived at only after millennia: of kings, | | | | (questionable-appearing) voter in person, and cannot |
| and dictator tyrants, and long-suffering commoners - | | | | monitor the voting process to assure that a person's |
| is that those who are governed elect those who are | | | | vote is an independent selection. |
| to govern them - for a specific and limited time | | | | The solution to the potential for illegal voting |
| period. It is a concept held sacred by Americans - | | | | corrupting elections is relatively simple (in function |
| (most, but not all of citizenry, of legislators, of | | | | only - political reluctance, however, is a major |
| Judges) and who also hold firmly to the notion of | | | | obstacle) - anyone applying for voter registration |
| playing by the rules, that the U.S. is a country of | | | | who is foreign born should be required to provide |
| laws, and the laws for election should be obeyed - to | | | | evidence of U.S. citizenship, verified with the records |
| the letter. | | | | of the Department of Homeland Security. That |
| In 1996, Congress enacted the Illegal Immigration | | | | requirement however, has been impossible to enact |
| Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act, making it a | | | | by legislators, many considering the present situation |
| federal crime for non-citizens to vote in any federal | | | | advantageous to them. |
| election (or any state election, unless authorized by | | | | The political irony is striking: the United States sends |
| state law). A non-citizen who falsely claims to be a | | | | election monitors around the world to help discourage |
| United States citizen is in violation of this law - the | | | | fraudulent elections elsewhere, however, here at |
| penalty, possible deportation for ineligible non-citizens | | | | home, it has largely turned a blind eye to the |
| who vote. | | | | possibility that fraudulent voting by non-citizens can |
| Has this law been upheld in the past? Many are the | | | | determine our political leaders. Not only is our voter |
| documented reports of non-citizens voting in | | | | registration system an easy target for abuse by |
| numerous elections - however, there is no record of | | | | non-citizen illegal aliens, its input to the apportionment |
| prosecution of any illegal aliens for any such action. | | | | of congressional seat allocations between states |
| Will this law be upheld in the future? Probably no | | | | affects the Electoral College vote that decides the |
| more than in the past. Voter registration workers | | | | Presidency. |
| have low-paying, tedious and temporary jobs, there | | | | - DMV officials in New York, a state that supposedly |
| is little incentive to challenge voters on the basis of | | | | does not permit illegal aliens to obtain driver's licenses, |
| suspicions aroused by mere appearance or accent or | | | | recently found when they retroactively checked the |
| speech, thus elections in close races can be decided | | | | Social Security Numbers provided by driver's license |
| by illegal voting. Also, driver's licences are oft-times | | | | applicants, there were 300,000 applications with false |
| sufficient for registration; absentee balloting makes | | | | numbers or where the same number was used |
| illegal voting easy; and then there are the sanctuary | | | | multiple times. |
| cities, where illegal aliens cannot even be questioned | | | | - Nearly 21 million noncitizen residents and illegal alien |
| by authorities as to their citizenship or lack thereof. | | | | residents are currently of voting age, suggesting that |
| With nearly 19 million foreign-born residents (not U.S. | | | | they may have obtained a driver's license and, at the |
| citizens) in the country, per the 2000 Census, and an | | | | same time, had the opportunity to register to vote. |
| estimated eleven million illegal residents, the potential | | | | (The Democrats have a large advantage in registering |
| is enormous for non-citizens to decide the outcome | | | | newly naturalized immigrants, it is thus reasonable to |
| of national elections. Charges have been made in at | | | | expect that if non-citizens vote they will likely vote |
| least three federal elections in California and two in | | | | for the Democratic Party). |
| Florida that voting by ineligible aliens may have | | | | - A recent report shows 80,000 Chicago illegals |
| determined the outcome of the elections. In Florida, | | | | registered to vote: "But they won't show up at jury |
| election observers say a "sizable number" of Florida | | | | summons," wrote an Atlanta newspaper published in |
| votes in the 2000 election may have been cast by | | | | 2008. Chicago features 2.1 million illegal aliens within its |
| ineligible felons as well as by illegal immigrants and | | | | "Sanctuary City." Cities such as Los Angeles, with |
| non-citizens; in California, former Republican Rep. | | | | upwards of 3.1 million illegal aliens, feature even more |
| Robert K. Dornan was defeated by Democrat | | | | voters which can swing votes in a national election. |
| Loretta Sanchez by 984 votes in the 1996 election. | | | | - Voting officials claim that two to four percent of |
| While state officials admit that many votes were | | | | votes in the 2000 presidential election were cast by |
| cast illegally by non-citizens, authorities appear to | | | | non-citizens; in some Florida counties, 10 to 15 |
| have not prosecuted a single alien who voted illegally. | | | | percent of votes were cast by non-citizens. In |
| It does appear that in some of these cases, illegal | | | | Florida's Miami-Dade County, over half the population |
| votes by aliens may have been unknowing, a result | | | | is foreign-born and nearly a third of the voting |
| of The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 | | | | age-population is non-citizen. |
| (known as the Motor-Voter Law). This law made the | | | | - Many states don't check citizenship, including |
| process of registering to vote essentially automatic | | | | Colorado, Iowa and South Dakota; also holding true in |
| for people who applied for a state driver's license or | | | | Sanctuary Cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles, |
| ID card; it called for registration applications to be | | | | Chicago, New York, Atlanta, Miami, Denver and 30 |
| distributed in state welfare offices. The information | | | | others. |
| supplied for a driving license doubles as a voter | | | | - Voting officials also note that absentee and mail-in |
| registration unless the applicant specifically indicates | | | | ballots reduce the risk to non-citizens of facing |
| that it is not desired. With driver's licenses made | | | | challenges at the polling place - almost a third of all |
| available by several states to both legal and illegal | | | | votes were cast by mail in California; 32 percent in |
| aliens, it seems likely that voter rolls now contain | | | | Arizona and 29 percent in Colorado. In those |
| large numbers of non-citizens, sufficient in close | | | | jurisdictions, non-citizens can register on-line or by mail |
| elections to change the outcome. An effort in | | | | and cast ballots without risking face-to-face |
| Congress in 1998 to preclude the registration of | | | | challenges, scrutiny at the registration office or at the |
| non-citizens was narrowly defeated. | | | | polls. An extensive report by the Florida Department |
| On the other hand, it is also undoubtedly true that | | | | of Law Enforcement on voter fraud, much of it in |
| some illegal aliens take deliberate advantage of | | | | Miami's Dade County, stated flatly, "Absentee voting |
| driver-license applications for purposes of | | | | is the greatest facilitator of fraud. |
| employment - seeking voter registration to help | | | | |