Dusty Johnson votes for SAVE Act and celebrates making it more difficult for American citizens to vote
We get so much bad news out of Washington, D.C., that, after a while, we become numb to it. Just the other day, the House of Representatives passed the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act or the SAVE Act, on a 218-213 party line vote. Just one Democrat voted for this piece of legislation, and Rep. Dusty Johnson was proud to pronounce his support.
What exactly would the SAVE Act do to us? It would require proof of citizenship to vote in the upcoming midterm elections, which President Trump and his acolytes are terrified they will lose. It would also require states to turn over their voter data to the federal government, which appears to be a violation of the Tenth Amendment.
Under our federal system, elections have always been managed at the state level. Considering Trump’s persistent war against local election officials in Georgia and other jurisdictions, this would seem to be an extremely bad time to federalize our elections, but there really is no good time to do so.
Who would be disproportionately impacted by the requirement that we all prove our citizenship in order to cast a vote this November? It is estimated that at least 2.6 million American adults lack a government-issued photo ID.
Here in South Dakota, some Native Americans might have difficulty proving their citizenship, despite the fact that their ancestors have lived here for thousands of years. In general, this requirement would be burdensome, if not impossible, for many low-income people, young people, for women who changed their surnames when they married, and for people who were born at home rather than in a hospital. Not all Americans have an official birth certificate that includes their current name, or a passport (which is probably the best proof of citizenship).
It is fair to assert that Dusty Johnson voted to disenfranchise about 10 percent of his constituents at a time when he is participating in a hot contest for governor. We might wonder if there is really a serious problem of non-citizens voting in American elections. No evidence has been presented to suggest that this is happening, and anyone who does vote illegally faces the likelihood of a prison sentence if they are apprehended. That is a pretty serious penalty to pay for simply casting one vote.
One of Dusty Johnson’s congressional colleagues is LaMonica McIver, a first-term representative from Newark, N.J. Like most of her constituents, McIver is Black. About nine months ago, she attempted to visit Delaney Hall, a federal immigration jail, with two other Democratic representatives from New Jersey. Federal law explicitly allows members of Congress to make unannounced visits to detention centers. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka also came along to inspect the facility amid reports of mistreatment of inmates, including failure to adequately feed them.
When this delegation arrived, ICE agents arrested Baraka for trespassing, although that charge was dropped within days. During his arrest, McIver and Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman tried to stand between Baraka and the ICE agents. Despite the physical confrontation at the entrance to Delaney Hall, the three members of Congress were eventually allowed to tour the facility.
However, Trump’s Justice Department later charged McIver with three felony counts of assaulting federal agents, perhaps because she was verbally combative when she stood between them and Baraka. There is no evidence that any of the agents were injured during this confrontation, but McIver is facing up to 17 years in prison if she is convicted. Interestingly, Rep. Coleman was not charged with any crime, but she is 80 years old, twice McIver’s age, which may make a difference. She has also served in Congress for many years.
This makes an interesting contrast. Some members of Congress are risking their future and even their freedom as they stand up to the authoritarian abuses of the Trump administration. Other members, including our own congressman, will shamelessly grovel before the leader and support efforts to deprive us of our basic constitutional rights.
We are truly at a historic crossroads.
Jay Davis of Rapid City is a retired lawyer and regular contributor to The South Dakota Standard.
Photo: public domain, wikimedia commons
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