I’ve spent an awful lot of time criticizing the Legislature these past few weeks, and I’ve no apologies. I put a lot of effort into helping to elect Democrats, and thus I have a special obligation to keep their feet to the fire once they’re in office. But as frustrating and disappointing as the budget battle has been, there have been quite a few positive things to come out of this session, not the least of which is HB 1517, which finally reforms our states convoluted system for restoring voting rights to felons who have served their time.
For decades, Washington has been home to some of the nation’s most restrictive felon voting laws, which as of today have effectively disenfranchised over 167,000 otherwise eligible citizens. As no less an authority than the American Correctional Association has long argued, felon disenfranchisement is “contradictory to the goals of a democracy, the rehabilitation of felons and their successful reentry to the community.”
Under HB 1517, felons may now register to vote once they have served their sentence and completed state supervised parole or probation. It wasn’t an easy vote for many Democrats, who are often made the victim of Republican efforts to label them as soft on crime, but it was the right thing to do. And ironically, while our restrictive felon voting laws have long had a disproportionate impact on minority communities, Washington’s felon population is still overwhelmingly white, male and working class… the state GOP’s core demographic.
Amongst Rossiphiles, the felon voter is still a potent bogeyman. But if there is anything positive to have come out of the GOP’s losing arguments in the 2004 gubernatorial election contest, it was the increased awareness of our undemocratic and unworkable felon disenfranchisement laws, and this new bill that reforms them.
Simply stated, had HB 1517 been in place prior to November 2004, Dino Rossi would have been elected governor of the state of Washington.
Yet Democrats generally support this legislation while Republicans oppose it.
So they get their right to vote back without serving the full penalty for their actions, which is the restitution to the victim or the state. Why even take it away in the 1st place then? Would you advocate for that?
Goldy, are you also for restoring their gun rights at the same time?
Hey Goldy–
At least those 3 kids that murdered the TubaMan will be able to vote when they turn 18…great news. My guess is they are Obama-ites. No accountability.
Dengle–
Goldy is scared of guns.
If you have your concealed weapons permit (which if you don’t, you really ought to), perhaps you can bring your handgun to Drinking Liberally and show Goldy what a gun looks like.
I’ll just bring a picture for him…..don’t want to cause any screetching…oh wait that’s his normal voice. :-)
What’s the matter Goldy? Were you mad that your friends and some of the posters here couldn’t vote? I would only support something like this after all fines and restitution are paid, and all sentences and related perameters thereof are completed. Until then, your unemployed ass can kiss my fuzzy bean-bag. (waits for screech-owl shrieking voice….)
So Goldy is making a tribute post to felons, but does anyone here remembering him posing a tribute to the Tuba Man or James Paroline? I guess this shows where his sympathies lie.
Hey Troll good new – you can finally vote asshole!
Sorry CYNCYN since you’re still serving your sentence in the sex offender unit at McNeil Island this law won’t help you.
Hey guys… I’m just on the side of Republican Secretary of State Sam Reed on this issue, not to mention the industry association representing public and privately run correctional institutions.
Our existing felon disenfranchisement laws are unworkable and counterproductive. You want to argue that convicted felons should never be allowed to vote again, make that argument. But that was never the intent of our law here in WA state.
Cynical @4,
We’ve had this conversation before. I was taught how to handle and shoot a gun at my Quaker overnight camp. I loved shooting, and was a member of the camp riflery team. And I’d probably enjoy a trip to a shooting range.
But I wouldn’t keep a gun in a house with a child.
There should be no voting rights extended until FULL restitution to the victims or to the state has been satisfied by the Felon under the agreement of his parole.
Anything short of that is being soft on crime. If a felon wants to live up to those obgliations, fine. It’s not up to milque toast liberals like Goldy opining that these provisions established as a condition for parole are “poll taxes”.
Toll: Goldy, would you ever hire a felon to babysit your kid?
Goldy: No, of course not. Not knowingly, at least.
Troll: Why not? They’ve served their time.
Goldy: Because I’m responsible for the safety of my child, and knowingly letting a felon watch my child would be the height of irresponsibility. My child is precious to me.
And Goldy, do you know what? Elections and voting is precious to me.
You don’t want felons involved with your kids. I don’t want felons involved with my government elections.
And with that, I believe I’ve just won this argument.
This is a courageous piece of legislation which reflects basic notions of fairness. Moreover, if the legislation has any impact on crime rates, it would be in the direction of reducing them to the extent the sense of alienation ex-felons feel would be reduced. Further, if trolls have the right to vote, I can see no rational reason to deny ex-felons the right to vote.
Sam Reed is wrong on this issue as he is with many….like all mail in voting.
I’m not sure what his motivation in on this….more power or laziness. I suspect the latter more….his dept stinks at tracking who should be voting, so lets make it so everyone can vote.
Didn’t Florida recently repeal their most restrictive laws on voting rights restoration? I hate the idea that we can’t restore voting rights at all, so we can gaurentee re-offending. Plus, once one lost the right to vote, and had it restored, they might think twice before they put themselves in a position to have it changed again. Maine and Vermont may go too far on the other extreme.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.c.....lance.html
The new Florida Process actually just makes it easier, does not automatically restore voting rights, but the old system had abuses that came to light in 2000. It still can be improved, but can’t expect Governor Crist to do miracles.
Ricky D must think that some of his fellow Publicans are soft on crime. He must think that the ACA is soft on crime.
Oh – and he must be for lots of state spending because he wants laws against voting enforced at great expense to the tax payer.
Troll
Your numbingly dumb conversation with yourself fails entirely to address the fairness argument. I would posit that a significant majority of Americans over the age of 30 or so have committed acts that qualify as felonies at some point in their lives. Many just have had the good fortune not to get caught. It is an incredibly shallow value judgment to posit that those who have been convicted of felonies are somehow ipso facto less moral than those who have not. if someone inclined to commit a felony is not deterred by the prospect of prison, then most certainly the prospect of losing one’s right to vote is not going to deter. Your facile approach to complicated policy issues must leave you a lot of time to pick your nose and examine your harvest.
@19
Answer my question. Why do you trust felons with our election system, but not with your children?
“Our existing felon disenfranchisement laws are unworkable and counterproductive.”
Really….who F’n cares!!!!
There are 9Billion reasons this doesn’t matter right now…..
Good on you Goldy to be so “in the know” about felons and how disenfranchised they are…
Victims took a hit today. That’s all that happened.
If you feel a “significant majority” of people have committed acts that qualify as felonies, what does that say about your group of friends and acquaintances? Time for a better class of friend, maybe not so many from the left side of the political spectrum.
And like a true leftist… It’s only one’s “good fortune” to not get caught. Like it’s only one’s “good fortune” to work hard and become rich.
If felons are allowed to hold office, why shouldn’t they be able to vote.
My solution would be to make more gun laws. If criminals are not deterred by the consequence of breaking the law, so more gun laws will make us safer. Damn that sounds stupid, how do liberals actually believe more gun laws are needed.
Troll @ 20: “Answer my question. Why do you trust felons with our election system, but not with your children?”
Your question is mindless, a complete apples and oranges type of query. Determining who I might trust with my children is an individual inquiry that has nothing to do with categories. There are both felons and nonfelons I would trust, and their status as either would not factor into the determination. I don’t trust people like you with our election system because you do not have the ability to separate truth from nonsense, though I reluctantly must concede that you should have the right to vote. I would not, however, entrust you with the care of anyone’s children. Do you see how ridiculous your question is, Troll?
11. Goldy spews:
I’m talking about a firearm Goldy…not your dick.
Felons get the OK on voting rights and the Democrats keep on making it difficult for the American GI to vote from overseas.
@27 The only GIs who had trouble voting from overseas that I’m aware of is those who were targeted by the GOP for voter registration challenges.
Yes, my lying hypocrite friend, it was the Republicans who cynically sent registered letters to the homes of GIs who had been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, and then challenged their right to vote because the letters came back.
It’s hard to imagine anything lower than sending your fellow citizens to war, and then blocking their right to vote because they’re not home to sign for your registered letter. But apparently that’s not too low for the GOP, whose partisan zealots will do anything to steal an election.
As for jerks like you who shill for these scum, I say that until you start respecting our troops, you should get out of my country.
It’s probably just as well this law wasn’t enacted 5 years ago, because Dino would be sitting in the governor’s mansion if more felons had voted in ’04.
Re 29: We don’t actually know who the 1,500 or so ineligible felons voted for in ’04, but we can make an educated guess. The best evidence we have of that is a survey by newspaper reporters. Of 10 felon voters who were willing to talk, 9 said they voted for Rossi and 1 said she voted for Gregoire. This may not be a definitive statistical sampling, but it’s the only statistical sampling we have, and it indicates that 90% of Washington’s ineligible felons voted for the Republican candidate.
28. Roger Rabbit pellets:
Again Pelletizer shows his ignorance to facts. Al Gorebasm tried to disenfranchise Florida military votes in the 2000 election. He was afraid they would break 70/30 against when they only broke 58/42. This fact has been presented to the dumb bunny yet he only remembers the “targeted by the GOP” because he’s a moron.
The latest military voter fiasco is the 20th COngressional District in NY election last month. Because the military ballots were mailed late, the two Donkey election commissioners voted No to extend the return deadline. Typical so Typical.
Or Pelletizer forgets Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie in the Al Franken – Norm Coleman battle. Ritchie decided to relax the absentee voter signature requirements but refused to relax these same standards for military voters. I’m sure GBS would stand up for his buds voting rights fighting in forward combat zones.
The standard rule of the Dummocraptic party is “Count every vote”. Simple translated this means “count every vote which helps a Democrat, even if you have to count it a dozen or two times”.
Keywords – “I’m aware of.”
You’re not very aware. Or you are too scared to admit it.
It’s estimated that 50% of Americans use or have tried marijuana, so there are lots of uncaught criminals around.
Like Bernie Madoff?
@26 there goes CYNCYN again doing what he does best – dreaming of dick!
Marvie,
Damn, you’re dumb. I don’t believe you are a working musician. I don’t believe you could count out 4/4 time, let alone 5/4 time. Damn, you’re dumb.
Goldy
Put your money where your big mouth is! e to Support a City of Seattle income tax. If it is good for the state it would be even better for the city.
You don’t believe? I guess that shows exactly how ignorant you are when it comes to facts and not feelings.
Maybe this would be a good time for you to contemplate all the other things you believe to be true that are in reality false.
Is it a felony to smoke pot? We were talking about felonies.
Good point. Bernie was a left-winger (follow the money) and he did get caught. Let’s see if the people he contributed to (democrats) put him in jail.