A police officer tells Tony Patterson (right) he is being arrested for alleged "voter fraud" on August 18, 2022 in Tampa, Florida. (Image: screenshot/Tampa Bay Times)
The GOP's Absurd, Disingenuous Hunt for Non-Existent Election Fraudsters
Republicans like Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida reached a new level of political degradation this year by literally gamifying their obsession with nonexistent voter fraud.
This election year has added a new season to our country's calendar: The silly season.
Not silly as in fun -- but as in asinine, stupid and pernicious. Forget any notion that America's periodic plebiscite should be about lofty ideals, important issues and real ideas. Instead, right-wing screwballs have turned the GOP into the Goofy Old Party, running campaigns based on frat-boy stunts, horror movie scaremongering and moronic games of hate-your-neighbor.
Like former President Donald Trump and a gaggle of other GOP governors, DeSantis has used the phony bugaboo of an illegal voting epidemic as a political ploy to keep true believers believing.
In that last category, the GOP reached a new level of political degradation this year by literally gamifying its obsession with nonexistent voter fraud. Party honchos have repeatedly been humiliated by screeching long and loud that Democrats are running a massive illegal voting operation across America -- yet, golly, they can't actually produce any proof of this electoral horror. So, they've turned their snipe hunt into a national game.
Using several social media platforms, online posses of GOP voter fraud vigilantes compete to find and out illegal voters. Post the name of an unqualified person supposedly scheming to cast a ballot, and you get two points. Name a group planning to bus illegal voters to the polls -- Bingo! -- you get 50 points. There are also bonus points if you report someone trying to vote by using the name of their pet or a dead person. Isn't this fun?
But the funnest part of this "sport" is that you score simply by posting names -- no need for any evidence that it's a real person, much less an illegal voter. What's the prize? If you get enough points, you get to be called a "master." Wow, this isn't just silly... it's pathetic.
Far worse, though, given the screwball fantasies of today's right-wing extremists, this "game" is deadly dangerous. Some of the GOP's vigilantes say they'll personally go door to door to get proof of fraudulent voting. What could possibly go wrong with promoting such unhinged confrontational zealotry? Ask Paul Pelosi.
After years of failed Republican efforts to uncover any proof of widespread voter fraud by Democrats, Republican Gov. Ron "Tough Guy" DeSantis of Florida has found not one, but 20 ineligible people casting ballots!
Like former President Donald Trump and a gaggle of other GOP governors, DeSantis has used the phony bugaboo of an illegal voting epidemic as a political ploy to keep true believers believing. They spend millions of taxpayer dollars on partisan wild goose chases, and DeSantis even created a new police bureaucracy, the "Office of Election Crimes," to snoop on voters. It was all just silly political nastiness, but then -- aha! -- Ron's dragnet scooped up 20 of the diabolical culprits. Vindication!
Who were they? All are former convicts who had previously been stripped of their right to vote, but each one unwittingly cast a ballot in 2020, wrongly believing that their rights had been restored after serving their time. Who cares what they thought, bellowed the bullish governor? He trashed them as "election criminals" (conveniently ignoring their constitutional right to be presumed innocent unless convicted by a jury).
Well, gosh, why did all 20 think they could vote? Because each one had properly submitted voter registration applications that went to DeSantis' own state agency responsible for determining eligibility. But -- oops -- Ron's own administration boo-booed, erroneously authorizing all 20 to get official voter ID cards. In short, the governor himself effectively told them they could vote -- then he had them arrested and publicly condemned for doing so!
This self-serving political thug now wants to be our next president, even claiming in a PR video this month that God has chosen him to rule because he's "a fighter." But -- hello -- Saint Ron fights the people, rather than fighting for them. He's a bully -- and there's nothing godly about that. Nothing presidential, either.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
This election year has added a new season to our country's calendar: The silly season.
Not silly as in fun -- but as in asinine, stupid and pernicious. Forget any notion that America's periodic plebiscite should be about lofty ideals, important issues and real ideas. Instead, right-wing screwballs have turned the GOP into the Goofy Old Party, running campaigns based on frat-boy stunts, horror movie scaremongering and moronic games of hate-your-neighbor.
Like former President Donald Trump and a gaggle of other GOP governors, DeSantis has used the phony bugaboo of an illegal voting epidemic as a political ploy to keep true believers believing.
In that last category, the GOP reached a new level of political degradation this year by literally gamifying its obsession with nonexistent voter fraud. Party honchos have repeatedly been humiliated by screeching long and loud that Democrats are running a massive illegal voting operation across America -- yet, golly, they can't actually produce any proof of this electoral horror. So, they've turned their snipe hunt into a national game.
Using several social media platforms, online posses of GOP voter fraud vigilantes compete to find and out illegal voters. Post the name of an unqualified person supposedly scheming to cast a ballot, and you get two points. Name a group planning to bus illegal voters to the polls -- Bingo! -- you get 50 points. There are also bonus points if you report someone trying to vote by using the name of their pet or a dead person. Isn't this fun?
But the funnest part of this "sport" is that you score simply by posting names -- no need for any evidence that it's a real person, much less an illegal voter. What's the prize? If you get enough points, you get to be called a "master." Wow, this isn't just silly... it's pathetic.
Far worse, though, given the screwball fantasies of today's right-wing extremists, this "game" is deadly dangerous. Some of the GOP's vigilantes say they'll personally go door to door to get proof of fraudulent voting. What could possibly go wrong with promoting such unhinged confrontational zealotry? Ask Paul Pelosi.
After years of failed Republican efforts to uncover any proof of widespread voter fraud by Democrats, Republican Gov. Ron "Tough Guy" DeSantis of Florida has found not one, but 20 ineligible people casting ballots!
Like former President Donald Trump and a gaggle of other GOP governors, DeSantis has used the phony bugaboo of an illegal voting epidemic as a political ploy to keep true believers believing. They spend millions of taxpayer dollars on partisan wild goose chases, and DeSantis even created a new police bureaucracy, the "Office of Election Crimes," to snoop on voters. It was all just silly political nastiness, but then -- aha! -- Ron's dragnet scooped up 20 of the diabolical culprits. Vindication!
Who were they? All are former convicts who had previously been stripped of their right to vote, but each one unwittingly cast a ballot in 2020, wrongly believing that their rights had been restored after serving their time. Who cares what they thought, bellowed the bullish governor? He trashed them as "election criminals" (conveniently ignoring their constitutional right to be presumed innocent unless convicted by a jury).
Well, gosh, why did all 20 think they could vote? Because each one had properly submitted voter registration applications that went to DeSantis' own state agency responsible for determining eligibility. But -- oops -- Ron's own administration boo-booed, erroneously authorizing all 20 to get official voter ID cards. In short, the governor himself effectively told them they could vote -- then he had them arrested and publicly condemned for doing so!
This self-serving political thug now wants to be our next president, even claiming in a PR video this month that God has chosen him to rule because he's "a fighter." But -- hello -- Saint Ron fights the people, rather than fighting for them. He's a bully -- and there's nothing godly about that. Nothing presidential, either.
This election year has added a new season to our country's calendar: The silly season.
Not silly as in fun -- but as in asinine, stupid and pernicious. Forget any notion that America's periodic plebiscite should be about lofty ideals, important issues and real ideas. Instead, right-wing screwballs have turned the GOP into the Goofy Old Party, running campaigns based on frat-boy stunts, horror movie scaremongering and moronic games of hate-your-neighbor.
Like former President Donald Trump and a gaggle of other GOP governors, DeSantis has used the phony bugaboo of an illegal voting epidemic as a political ploy to keep true believers believing.
In that last category, the GOP reached a new level of political degradation this year by literally gamifying its obsession with nonexistent voter fraud. Party honchos have repeatedly been humiliated by screeching long and loud that Democrats are running a massive illegal voting operation across America -- yet, golly, they can't actually produce any proof of this electoral horror. So, they've turned their snipe hunt into a national game.
Using several social media platforms, online posses of GOP voter fraud vigilantes compete to find and out illegal voters. Post the name of an unqualified person supposedly scheming to cast a ballot, and you get two points. Name a group planning to bus illegal voters to the polls -- Bingo! -- you get 50 points. There are also bonus points if you report someone trying to vote by using the name of their pet or a dead person. Isn't this fun?
But the funnest part of this "sport" is that you score simply by posting names -- no need for any evidence that it's a real person, much less an illegal voter. What's the prize? If you get enough points, you get to be called a "master." Wow, this isn't just silly... it's pathetic.
Far worse, though, given the screwball fantasies of today's right-wing extremists, this "game" is deadly dangerous. Some of the GOP's vigilantes say they'll personally go door to door to get proof of fraudulent voting. What could possibly go wrong with promoting such unhinged confrontational zealotry? Ask Paul Pelosi.
After years of failed Republican efforts to uncover any proof of widespread voter fraud by Democrats, Republican Gov. Ron "Tough Guy" DeSantis of Florida has found not one, but 20 ineligible people casting ballots!
Like former President Donald Trump and a gaggle of other GOP governors, DeSantis has used the phony bugaboo of an illegal voting epidemic as a political ploy to keep true believers believing. They spend millions of taxpayer dollars on partisan wild goose chases, and DeSantis even created a new police bureaucracy, the "Office of Election Crimes," to snoop on voters. It was all just silly political nastiness, but then -- aha! -- Ron's dragnet scooped up 20 of the diabolical culprits. Vindication!
Who were they? All are former convicts who had previously been stripped of their right to vote, but each one unwittingly cast a ballot in 2020, wrongly believing that their rights had been restored after serving their time. Who cares what they thought, bellowed the bullish governor? He trashed them as "election criminals" (conveniently ignoring their constitutional right to be presumed innocent unless convicted by a jury).
Well, gosh, why did all 20 think they could vote? Because each one had properly submitted voter registration applications that went to DeSantis' own state agency responsible for determining eligibility. But -- oops -- Ron's own administration boo-booed, erroneously authorizing all 20 to get official voter ID cards. In short, the governor himself effectively told them they could vote -- then he had them arrested and publicly condemned for doing so!
This self-serving political thug now wants to be our next president, even claiming in a PR video this month that God has chosen him to rule because he's "a fighter." But -- hello -- Saint Ron fights the people, rather than fighting for them. He's a bully -- and there's nothing godly about that. Nothing presidential, either.