Saying it Out Loud: The SAVE Act

I need to step away from the Headlines vs. Reality chapters to talk about something else. Though you could file this one under that same name too.

The SAVE Act. Anyone heard about it lately? I want to tell you where I stand on it, and repeat something somebody said to me recently that I haven't been able to shake.

This isn't a story about Republicans versus Democrats. Election integrity isn't a party platform, not really. The DFL doesn't want ineligible people voting any more than Republicans do. But there's a real difference between how Trump's wing of the party is handling this and how Republicans used to.

I believe every eligible American has the right to vote. I don't have a problem showing a government ID at the polls. I do have a problem making people jump through hoops and spend money they don't have to get one. Women shouldn't face more hurdles than men to get an ID. People who've never needed a driver's license because they take the bus shouldn't have to pay out of pocket to exercise a constitutional right.

Somebody told me recently that if 500 people in our state lose their right to vote because they can't get the right paperwork together, they're fine with that. WHAT? So because the federal government wants to nationalize elections, you're okay with taking away someone's constitutional right because they don't have the documents you're demanding? That's not the country I grew up in. That looks a lot like keeping certain people from voting, because you think you already know how they'd vote.

Even if you're not voting for me, if you're eligible, I want you to have the right and the chance to vote. Even if you can't scrape together every document Trump's version of the GOP is demanding.

We need someone who stands up for people who can't stand up for themselves. Someone who represents all of us, not a party. We don't have that now. We need it more than ever.

Brian Walker