The thing that strikes me as odd about what is happening in Michigan with regard to requiring state ids to vote is that it is focused on the wrong thing. I believe that this is a thinly disguised attempt to make it more difficult (if not impossible) for citizens to exercise their right to vote.
Until this year, the township that I live in had a very simple and effective means of verifying voter identity: you sign a block on your voter registration form that is duplicated in a ledger that you again must sign at the time you vote. Simple, effective and costs the citizen nothing. Now, they too are requiring state issued photo ids in order to vote.
Instead of trying to concoct ways of making it more difficult to vote, why isn’t there more focus on making sure that the votes are actually counted in an accurate verifiable way? It baffles me that the state of Nevada has a rigorous certification and inspection process for slot machines while there is no similar scrutiny for voting machines and processes.
I guess I shouldn’t be surprised at all as there is a clear line of thinking in this country of late that money (gambling) is more important that citizens rights (voting).