Chris Matthews of MSNBC’s Hardball accused Gov. Nikki Haley, R-S.C., of trying to disenfranchise black voters who vote Democratic by passing a voter ID law, which the South Carolina Democratic Party Chair associated with Jim Crow-era racism.
“There have been complaints by many South Carolinians that the law [requiring citizens to show photo identification at the polls] will effectively end up disenfranchising many traditionally Democratic supporters in the state,” Matthews said, before asking his guests, “But why are the Republicans getting so randy to roll up the vote, if that’s what they’re up to?”
Dick Harpootlian, the chairman of the South Carolina Democratic Party, said that Haley wanted to disenfranchise black voters who don’t have driver licenses. “They saw what happened in 2008 — huge African American turnout for President Obama, and they are wanting to do whatever they can to diminish that,” Harpootlian said, before adding a dig at his home state. “Poll tax, literacy tests – an old South Carolina tradition.” In an Associated Press story on the laws, Harpootlian called the legislation “electoral genocide.”
The AP story said the law “appears to be disproportionately affecting minority voters” in South Carolina, who would have to present some government photo ID at the polls. Without such an ID, “they can still cast a provisional ballot or vote absentee.” AP provided some addition information on how the law works:
The state is offering free ID cards. To get those, people have to show documents that include their name, such as birth certificates, marriage or divorce records.
The Advancement Project’s Judith Brown-Dianis described the voter ID laws, to Matthews, as “old-time voter suppression.”
You can watch the complete Hardball segment below.
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