The former chair of the Florida Republican party says the GOP uses voter fraud as a "marketing tool" to mask their efforts to erect "roadblocks" for minority voters, college-age voters, and others who are more likely to vote Democratic.
In a deposition released last month, Jim Greer, who was ousted as party chief in 2010 and is currently on trial for corruption charges relating to his management of the party's finances, said that at times during his tenure “political consultants and staff were talking about voter suppression and keeping blacks from voting."
On PoliticsNation Thursday, Greer elaborated. "I sat at many meetings where it was discussed of how to make sure that what happened in 2008, when President Obama brought out the college-age voters, the minority voters, never happened again," he told Al Sharpton.
"The Republican party believes that minority voters in general are not ever gonna vote Republican," said Greer, an ally of former governor Charlie Crist who has long had a rocky relationship with the current party leadership. "So discussions centered around, 'how do we make sure what happened in '08 never happens again?' And part of those discussions dealt with changing the election laws in Florida."
"Some of those changes dealt with reducing early voting," Greer continued, as Sharpton noted that 54% of African-Americans voted early in 2008. "They talked about making voter registration much more difficult for third party organizations like the League of Women Voters."
Under Republican governor Rick Scott, Florida has conducted a purge of the voter rolls, knocking off perhaps thousands of legitimate voters, and has passed other restrictions on voting.
Greer also said voter fraud, the reason given by Florida party officials for the restrictions, was never a legitimate concern.
"Never one time did we have any discussions where voter fraud was a real issue," he said. "It's simply been created as a marketing tool here in Florida for the right wing that is running the state government now, to convince voters that what they're doing here is right."
"I was in the room," he said. "It's part of the strategy."
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It just doesn't surprise me anymore and shouldn't surprise anyone else either - always has been a major scam platform on the Republican side to suppress voting - it's based on their definition of Land of the Free...
OK, the guy is a crook and he's been ousted by the Republican party. Now how about if the Dems clean house??
This comes as no surprise. I am just surprised that a former Republican came out with the root of the reasoning behind voter suppression. It comes down as prejudice and bias against black voting. The Republican party has really changed for the worst. They talk about Obama taking their rights away, yet they are going against the constitution with this type of behavior.
How the hell do these right wing scumbags get away with this? Suppressing someone's right to vote is tantamount to treason, IMHO!
@ Robert. But it is perfectly acceptable to write checks to 110 million loafers every month on the taxpayers dime, and expect them to vote with their heads? Talk about blatantly buying votes. Welfare needs to be so far removed from government as to be beyond reproach. Our current form of government is so far removed from the intention of the constitution as to be a joke. It should be very small, very limited and not concern itself with any private business!
So, you want to draw that position back a tad, or are you just a big fan of anarchy?
You, Sir, are drunk on Stupid Juice. Enjoy porking your double cousin at your family reunion or, as you likely call the gathering, my speed datin' time.