Inclined Right

I barely heard about the so-called “Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2010″.  The mainstream media has abdicated its position of responsibility of watching the political process.  I caught a little about it on Glenn Beck’s morning radio show.  It took a little digging in the Congressional Record, but I was alarmed at what I found in this resolution.  Time was short when I called the office of Congressman Leonard Boswell (D-IA) on the morning of the day the bill was passed in the House.  I spoke to a nice woman who assured me she would pass along my urging that Congressman Boswell not vote for HR2499.  But, in the evening I saw Boswell’s vote logged in the yea’s column of roll call 242.  I have come to expect it. Whatever seems right to me, he is consistently on the other side.  I was even more disappointed to see 39 GOP votes there along with my Democrat representative.  Apparently, election rigging is an act that can gain bipartisan support.  Forty Democrats voted against it.  At least some of them can read and have a conscience.

I cite an excerpt from section 3 of the bill about who may vote in the referendum proposed for Puerto Rico:

(c) Eligibility To Vote- Each of the following shall be eligible to vote in any plebiscite held under this Act:

(1) All eligible voters under the electoral laws in effect in Puerto Rico at the time the plebiscite is held.

(2) All United States citizens born in Puerto Rico who comply, to the satisfaction of the Puerto Rico State Elections Commission, with all Commission requirements (other than the residency requirement) applicable to eligibility to vote in a general election in Puerto Rico. Persons eligible to vote under this subsection shall, upon timely request submitted to the Commission in compliance with any terms imposed by the Electoral Law of Puerto Rico, be entitled to receive an absentee ballot for the plebiscite.

Yes, Representative Boswell and his bloc voted to bias this proposed election affecting the residents of Puerto Rico by authorizing non-residents to vote.  Subsection (1) authorizes all eligible voters under the laws of Puerto Rico.  This section has no practical function because the laws of Puerto Rico already authorize the proper voters.  Subsection (1) is merely linguistic posturing to reduce the red-alert-shocking-effect of subsection (2). Clearly, the sole purpose of subsection (2) is to waive the residency requirement so that the outcome can be skewed by a large number of votes which otherwise would not, and should not, be considered valid.  The residency requirement is right according to our Constitution, according to natural law,  and has longstanding acceptance.  For example, I live in Representative Boswell’s district. I was born in New Mexico. I can’t vote in New Mexico, because I am a resident of Iowa.  If I did vote in New Mexico, it would be unfair to the residents of the Land of Enchantment to have me affecting their political outcome on the basis that I was born there.  They have to live with the consequences of their elections.  While I may have an opinion about their issues, I am largely unaffected by them.  Therefore, the law doesn’t allow me to vote in New Mexico.

This type of political maneuvering is standard operating procedure for progressives. They let no principle stand in the way of their agenda. I believe (in this case) that agenda is to get Puerto Rico admitted as the 51st state.  I believe they want that admission because they believe in all likelihood Puerto Rico will seat more progressives in the U.S. Congress.  I admit that should be the prerogative of the legal residents of Puerto Rico.  But, since this statehood question has been repeatedly and soundly defeated by those residents the progressives came up with subsection (2).  Stuffing the ballot box with non-resident votes is wrong by any measure one can apply to it.

In the Senate, the bill was read twice on 4/30/2010 and referred  to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.  Let’s pray with God’s help we can get our Senators to pay attention to the unconstitutional nature of allowing non-residents to vote.  This is a precedent we don’t want set.

When you call the office of your Senator, don’t let anyone snow you with the assertion that the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act does the same thing as subsection (2) of HR2499.  I served in the U.S Navy overseas and I voted absentee.  In order to do so, I had to have a declared residency in the state in which I was voting.  This led to the requirement to pay taxes in that state and all the other obligations of resident citizenship (such as who issued my driver’s license).  This is a far cry from the argument that “I was born there”.

Wake up, my friends.  Its a very short step for the progressives in Congress to go from authorizing ballot-box stuffing in Puerto Rico, to authorizing the same where you are a legal resident.