Montini: Suppressing votes to restore... ‘integrity’?

Arizona politicians don't avoid the cow pies.

Just the opposite. They step on them on purpose.

In certain jurisdictions my brothers and sisters in the media must carefully parse the public pronouncements of politicians and party operatives, reading between the cleverly crafted lines to discover slyly concealed droppings.

In Arizona, politics is a pristine pasture with all the recently deposited meadow muffins on full display.

For example, the most recent declaration by the state’s Republican Party Chairman Robert Graham concerning House Bill 2023, which would make it a Class 6 felony (and could lead to a year in jail and a fine of up to $150,000) if a person other than a family member or caregiver delivers an early ballot.

Graham loves this proposal and heaped praise on its sponsors in a recent press release. They even sent one to me.

In simple terms, HB 2023 is a voter-suppression law.

It’s a way of keeping some votes from getting to the polls.

Democrats are pretty good at recruiting volunteers to collect and deliver ballots.

It’s not a criminal conspiracy. It’s simply voters helping voters.

Rather than try to win over those voters with their ideas, the Republicans in control of the Legislature would like to prevent these particular votes from making it to the ballot box.

They won’t say that directly, of course.

But they are so clumsy with the indirect way they say it as to make it obvious.

In his press release, Graham praised his party and the lawmakers behind the bill for the “passionate case we made against the progressive leftists who are using ballot harvesting to manipulate the election.”

Manipulate?

As in cheat? Because there is no evidence of widespread (or any other kind of) fraud.

The ballots collected must be verified. Signatures must be matched. And election officials say there are very, very few examples of any sort of tampering.

The only “problem” with the practice is that Republicans believe the majority of ballots collected and delivered by volunteers go to Democrats.

Graham said, “I thank Rep. (Michelle) Ugenti-Rita as the lead sponsor of this bill to restore integrity to our elections.”

Hold on a second.

Restore integrity to our elections?

Restore?

Does that mean Graham believes recent elections were corrupted?

Is he suggesting that the results of those elections are fraudulent?

Because the Republican Party he chairs pretty much won them all. They control the governor’s office, the state House, state Senate and all of the state’s other major elected offices.

Did these elections lack “integrity”?

And why would a party officer even admit such a thing since most all of his candidates won?

The Democrats at the state Capitol haven’t introduced legislation that would somehow prevent Republican voters from participating. They haven’t whined about manipulation or the lack of integrity in our elections.

So what is it?

Must we restore integrity to our elections?

(Which isn’t needed.)

Or to our politicians?

(Which isn’t possible.)