On a more partisan note, I think it speaks of the moral bankruptcy of the Republican party that their victory hopes are pinned on suppressing the votes of those most vulnerable and most alienated from American life. Republicans wonder why African-American voters are the most reliable Democratic voting bloc? The picture of matrons from suburban Ohio driving into the inner cities to try and deny poor and minority voters their right to have their votes counted is already indelibly stamped on my brain, and I'm a suburban Irish-American -- just imagine if I came from a ethnic group with a bloody history of having its voice and vote suppressed?
While I think that it would be healthier for our democracy, and for the Democratic party, if there was more competition for African-American votes, the Republican party (like the Democratic party of old) seems determined to make sure that doesn't happen.
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