Hat tip: LST reader Butch
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29 Responses to “Vote early, vote often. Texas Legislators do.”Search
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Defending Identity: Its Indispensable Role in Protecting Democracy
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Fear No Evil
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The Case For Democracy: The Power of Freedom to Overcome Tyranny and Terror
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Just saw this and is very troubling. Someone needs to hold our elected leaders accountable.
You are so right ST but man!!!……..there is so much to hold them accountable for.
Have a great day BTW. Just 14 minutes til closing time. Then out with all the other masses.
Thats so bizarre
Business as usual in Austin. Hey Dan, here’s a job for you. Clean out this cesspool.
You could solve it by making them vote with a biometric thumb swipe instead of a button, but honestly it’s not that big a deal.
This has been going on for my entire adult life and probably since votes were made electronic. I’ve seen it hundreds of times - on nearly every vote. It rarely matters to the outcome, FWIW, and whenever it might there’s inevitably a motion to doublecheck whether voting members are all present. The chair makes everyone resume their seats, have a roll call of the prevailing side, and strike any “ghost” votes who weren’t in the room. Every session one or two votes flip during that process, but not many considering how ubiquitous the practice is.
I noticed that each voting box has a key. Gotta keep it secure, you know.
#1 southern tragedy,
“someone needs to hold our elected oficials accountable” Therein lies the problem, hardly anyone does. Most people are too busy playing golf, doing lunch or going out for happy hour and things like that, heck there is no time left to call their representatives or to even go vote in an election. That is the huge American tragedy, it’s called apathy! You all keep electing the same politicians.
“Not that big a deal”. I can’t believe you said that. It’s wrong no matter how long they’ve been getting away with it. Legislators need to be present to represent their constituents not allow someone else to vote in their place.
It must be different in the Texas Senate, Dan talked about one measure passing as they called a vote when one of the opposition went to the bathroom.
Isn’t that NUTS and ILLEGAL? Thanks Butch for spreading this around. It was a real shocker.
Wow.
No big deal? Grits, did you miss the part where they themselves passed rules outlawing the practice?
It is ridiculous to allow “ghost” voting when the rules created by the legislators themselves forbid it. There should be plenty of red faces after this snippet gets wider publicity and we all pile on.
BTW, requiring a photo ID to vote is a necessity, good folks in the Lege…. Sorry if it offends those who indulge in vote fraud, and you know who you are.
I hope it is a Texas photo ID issued by the Texas Department of Public Safety.
O.K., I’ve done my part. I have contacted every news station in Houston, Fox news, Hannity, O Reilly, Ingraham, and everyone else I can think of, to help expose this./not holding breath
I say “not a big deal” for the same reason that someone’s story of vomiting in the slaughterhouse would never scare me off sausage. The making of laws and sausage are never pretty, and video just exposes the rather unkempt process to the light of day.
You wouldn’t believe how many of their own rules are routinely violated in the name of collegiality. The question is, does it affect the outcome of votes. There are two options, both routinely exercised, to make sure practice this never changes what a vote result would be: 1) “verification votes” may be called on close votes where the prevailing side has a roll call, or 2) “motions to reconsider” if somebody figures out after the fact that their vote was cast against their wishes (almost never happens - people know how their colleagues vote) and the vote was close enough for it to sway the outcome.
So it’s not a big deal, to me, because it’s a longstanding part of the House culture and I’ve never seen it affect the outcome of the democratic process. I’d support fixing it, and even suggested the easiest method - biometric thumb swipes instead of buttons or keys (you can give away your key but not your thumb). But honestly, a Speaker failing to grant a motion to vacate the chair is a far greater affront to democracy than this minor, longstanding pettifoggery.
Whatever happened to the old fashioned roll call vote. Looks to me like this electronic voting practice has about run its course.
I don’t care if my closest relative thinks they know how I would vote - they still shouldn’t vote for me!
Texas Senate rules seem to be about as effective UN resolutions.
And if memory serves me well, the same bunch that does this can get out of a traffic ticket while the Leg is in session BECAUSE GETTING TO AUSTIN TO CAST A VOTE IS SO IMPORTANT THAT THEY CANNOT BE CITED FOR TRAFFIC OFFENSES!
If I ever win the lottery, I’ll run for office and be a pain in the butt! I’ll make my own T shirts. Vote for me because the other guy sucks! I’ll have a ruler and go around smacking hands like a 230 lb moustachioed psycho nun. I’d beeyochslap Whitmire because I ain’t as patient as Dan Patrick! Being nice will get ya nowhere! Let ‘em complain. They would have to ’splain why their hand was where it was.
“Vote early, vote often” isn’t that the Dimwit mantra in places like Chicago and Louisana. Or is it “Wanted Dead or Alive”, you can be a registered Dimwit voter.
DARN SKIPPY! Since when is the Democrat voting for a Republican and vice-versa account for anything? If you ain’t there, you DON’T get a freakin’ vote! Period. End of story.
I’ll keep ya posted if I hear about anybody I’ve e-mailed is willing to take this story./spittles
Fasternme for any state office! I’ll supply the old rulers that we cannot read anymore at work, for FREE!
OK Grits, then why did they specifically vote on rules that they knew they had no intention of following?
As far as I’m concerned this is no different than guys I work with clocking each other out. If we catch any employee doing that they are fired. They are paid by the citizens of the great State of Texas to legislate. That includes being present to vote. If you are not there to vote then you are breaking your contract. For Pete’s sake, they are only required to be there 140 days every two years! The least they can do is be there for the freaking votes. THAT’S THEIR JOB!
@ Rastus - A roll call vote with 150 House members takes way too long to do every time. There are thousands of bills processed in just 140 days, and often several votes (both procedural and amendments) for each bill. They’d never get anything done.
@ Elizabeth - I’d wager your closest relative doesn’t know your politics the way one’s deskmate at the Legislature does. Besides, those absent members WANT someone to vote for them. If they didn’t all they’d have to do was take their key with them.
And @ hamous - Don’t equate not voting on any given item with not being at work. This isn’t analagous to your co-workers not clocking in, unless you next tell me they work 16-18 hour days or longer, because MANY legislators do during session. There are very few lazy people at the Lege. If they’re not on the floor, there’s a good chance they’re doing important work when they’re not there, like communicating with constituents, staff, the lobby, or participating in negotiations over bills (which has to happen sometime). “Their job” is a lot more than just votes. Plus, the Lege is scheduled with no bathroom or meal breaks, and often schedules members to be two places at once (e.g., sitting in a committee while laying out a bill in a different one).
The reason they have the rule is simple: So if it’s abused there’s recourse for a member who’s vote was miscast. Similarly, it’s also illegal to drive over 55 mph on I-10, but people go faster all the time; the law is there to enforce against those who abuse the situation, and the same is true with legislative ghost voting.
All that said, I’m fine truly banning ghost voting, it’d be easy to do, but as practiced IMO it’s far less an affront to democracy in a substantive way than the Speaker declaring himself Caesar at the end of the session. best,
look grits they have rules in the legislature - if they want to break them change the law.
besides what do you folks expect out of these clowns in Austin. look at your state budget and the things that did not get done the voter wanted done. look at the way they came up with the new biz tax - why would you expect them to follow the legislature rules?
I just stole it and re-posted it as a bulletin on my myspace page.
Response to #24
The rule you are refering to is a house rule. They are not laws. With house rules, the Speaker has lee-way on enforcement unless a member specifically objects. For example, time limits on speaking; the speaker can at his discretion give a person more time to speak or keep open a vote. The rules are there as a guide way for conducting the house in an orderly manner without having to make notions for govering rules everyday.
The issue of other members voting is not a big issue. As it has been pointed out, the legislators are working in various committee hearings as procedures and votes are occuring on the floor. IF there was a problem, for instance one member voting for another in a manner inconsistant with their wishes, it would already have been brought up.
Guys, this is like the third or fourth post LST has ripped from my archives without attribution in the last two weeks. If you want to repost something I posted, hey, that’s cool, just attribute me for chrissake. I’m getting tired of being your research department.
Proof:
http://redinktexas.blogspot.com/2007/05/lack-of-voter-integrity.html
Response to #27 and 28
Just because you have posted it on your blog means it your idea or topic?
Your link is no proof of anything. The author of this story attributed “Butch” as their source. The video is from You-Tube. Are you saying you created the video and the you-tube post is yours? Further more the Video is from a TV station in Austin and the story is from Nancy Wilson.