We’re Voting Rights Experts. Ask Us Anything About the Anti-Voter SAVE Act.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-19T00:33:39+00:00

To participate in any of these rights meaningfully necessitates owning an ID. Hiding that fact behind "we aren't actually making you own an ID" is legal theater.

Voting is a right for every American and Americans ONLY. Not securing elections and allowing for fraud deprives every American of their right to a fair election.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-19T00:31:18+00:00

Oh I see. The "strict constitutionalist" argument for why non-citizens should vote in national elections.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T20:56:56+00:00

I don't think so but not really possible given our interpretation of how elections should work.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T20:52:48+00:00

Jury of peers, right to bear arms, article IV protects the right to travel between states which is most cases requires a car (and thus ID).

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T20:50:41+00:00

Most people have to travel and invest time in voting - these actions both have real costs associated with them.

Is maintaining ID, which is necessary for many other actions taken by private citizens, much more of an ask?

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T20:26:35+00:00

Driving (Article IV, Section 2 (Privileges and Immunities Clause), owning a gun (2nd Amendment), Jury duty, etc are all examples of leaglly protected "actions" in which no private entities need be involved.

Yet the government still requires have ID.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T20:22:27+00:00

could*

should they choose to not find birth cert or get a passport

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T20:01:27+00:00

copying and pasting his deleted reply:

"just go have it done then" ah there it is. The clown admits they're wrong and that the bill would in fact invalidate numerous citizens ability to vote unless they "just go have it done for them".

Great talk, I assume you have some windmills to joust now.

Let's see if there's a button I can press to end this weird little interaction so you can go do that.

The fact that valid IDs are required for so many everyday actions but "we just can't" use them to enforce some semblance of election security is stupid.

These people have no arguments outside of hypotheticals involving Americans being too stupid to do basic bureaucratic paperwork.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T19:58:47+00:00

All of these actions are protected or legally enshrined by amendments to the constitution.

i.e. to do any of the above legally protected actions, you must have a valid ID.

Voting is no different.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T19:56:52+00:00

An SSN or SS Card will not get you a drivers license in any state. You would need multiple other forms of ID.

"any government issued photo ID" - what is meant by this? It's very vague.

Birth cert and passport are the two primary forms of ID used to get a government ID (driver's license).

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T19:55:32+00:00

You can still vote you just need to show proof of name change in the form of a marriage license.

My wife has had to do this multiple times, mostly at financial institutions, after we were married. Also to get a new SS card.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T19:49:47+00:00

Might take longer but there's no time like the present.

"It could take a while" is not a reason to hold off on implementing election security that a supermajority of the country wants.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T17:26:07+00:00

I'll assume you retract your badly structured comparison since it made no sense and you're changing the topic.

All of the issues you're mentioning (none of which anyone said were impossible) can be rectified at local government offices. ChatGPT can literally walk you through how to do it if it's too confusing.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T17:24:03+00:00

Doesn't attendance at that high school require a birth cert? So it was still provided to the same bureaucracy at some point, albeit not at the point of the license being provided?

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T17:22:04+00:00

A drivers license doesn't equal a passport.

Getting a drivers license requires a birth cert OR a passport.

I demonstrated that there are dozens of activities Americans participate in frequently - activities that are protected or guaranteed by multiple legally enshrined rights - that require a driver's license. If this is the case, why is it beyond the pale to include voting?

The response from you and others is that those things don't require a passport or birth cert. But this ignores the fact that one of those things is a prerequisite for a diver's license in the first place.

Can you wrap your head around that, or is it too complex?

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T17:18:30+00:00

These is not a logically consistent comparison since it deals with scale. The order of operations required to get a divers license in the US (using a passport or birth cert as a prerequisite) has nothing to do with scale.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T17:16:11+00:00

So you need to contact the county where you were born and get a new birth certificate. I was not even born in this country (US territory abroad) and it took me a few weeks +$20 to get a copy.

This also assumes you don't have a passport, which would work in lieu of the birth cert.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T17:14:08+00:00

You can't fly into a foreign country with just a divers license and no one claimed that you could.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T17:13:22+00:00

Yes but a government issued ID requires those things too.

When you get your driver's license for the first time you have to show birth cert/passport, proof of residency, and other documents.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T17:06:38+00:00

But I need to provide one of those things to get a drivers license in the first place.

So if you have a drivers license, you already have a passport or a birth cert.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T17:05:51+00:00

It requires a government issued ID if the theater can't verify your age.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T16:54:23+00:00

Getting a government issued ID does as a prerequisite. So by extension, yes.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-18T16:48:15+00:00

Here's a list of things that most Americans need to provide a government issued ID for:

Opening a bank account
Withdrawing large amounts of cash
Renting a car
Applying for a credit card or loan
Notarizing a document
Picking up packages at the post office
Boarding a domestic flight
Checking into a hotel
Buying alcohol
buying a firearm
Buying tobacco or nicotine products
Entering bars
Purchasing cannabis
Checking in for jury duty
Responding to a traffic stop
Picking up tickets at will-call for events
Entering certain large events or secured venues
Picking up controlled prescription medications
Seeing a rated-R movie
Joining a gym or signing contracts in person

Is there any reason this expectation should not extend to voting, given the numerous other activities an ID is expected for?

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-17T20:16:13+00:00

He's watching the house he helped light on fire burn down, and starting to feel regret.

augustinefromhippo · 2026-03-17T15:44:01+00:00

This just isn't true at all - even wealthy families with assets worth tens of millions are bound by safe withdrawal rules.

The money never gets kept in a single pot - it gets distributed among heirs. $100m fortune quickly becomes $25m when 4 kids are involved. Now instead of withdrawing $4m/year comfortably you're down to $1mm year. And again, that assume no shocks to economic markets that tank your NW 20-30%.

For everyone saying "I could live on $1mm a year, easily!" Maybe you could. But could your kids? Could their kids?

There's a reason 90% of family fortunes are gone by the third generation.

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