Florida Dems push back against voter purge

A Republican primary voter heads to the polls early at polling precinct No. 133 at the Coliseum in St. Petersburg, Florida.

/ AUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images

Updated: 4:28 p.m. ET

(CBS News) Amid continued controversy surrounding a recent purge of potential non-citizens on Florida voting rolls, a handful of Democratic Florida lawmakers are pushing back, arguing in a letter to Gov. Rick Scott that the process "fails to meet the basic standards of accountability" and that proceeding with it would be "irresponsible."

The Florida Department of Elections is in the process of sweeping the state election rolls and identifying Florida residents deemed to be potential non-citizens based on a cross-search of data from the Florida Department of Elections and the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Voters are notified by letter that they have been identified as potentially ineligible to vote, and have thirty days upon receipt of the letter to provide documentation of their citizenship or face removal from the polls.

The database, however, relies on some outdated driver's license information, and a number of the people list of possible non-citizens have proven their citizenship, according to the state's elections department. An analysis by the Miami Herald showed that the list was predominantly made up of Democrats, independents and Latinos.

Among those marked as a potential non-citizen was Bill Internicola, a 91 year-old Brooklyn-born military veteran who received a Bronze Star for fighting in the Battle of the Bulge in World War II, as the Miami Herald reported yesterday.

According to the Miami-Dade Elections Department, 1,637 people were flagged as "non-citizens" in that county, which has a large Latino community. At least 359 people have since proven their citizenship, and the county has also identified an additional 26 people as citizens. Eighty-three people responded denying ineligibility but did not provide proof. Those people will be removed after 30 days from date of response if no proof is provided, and are currently listed as "awaiting final determination."

Chris Cates, a spokesperson from the Florida Department of Elections, said the department had not yet been able to calculate approximate number of people who had been mistakenly targeted as possible non-citizens, but argued that the process would inevitably strengthen Florida's voting process.

"This is a productive action and improves the integrity of elections by being able to identify these non-citizens," he said. Cates says that race and party affiliation aren't taken into account by the state in its attempts to identify non-citizens.

"The only category that we're concerned about is whether or not somebody is an eligible voter. And if somebody is an ineligible voter, then they need to be removed from the voter rolls," he added. "Party and race are not a factor in this process at all and not something that we're even checking at any point in the process."

Civil rights groups argue that the removal of voters violate the National Voting Rights Act of 1993, which prohibits states from removing voters from the rolls within 90 days prior to a federal election. Florida held its presidential preference primary in January, but the primary for House and Senate candidates will be held on August 14.

In Tuesday's letter, Florida Democratic lawmakers Ted Deutch, Alcee Hastings, Corinne Brown, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Frederica Wilson and Kathy Castor contend that "providing a list of names with questionable validity - created with absolutely no oversight - to county supervisors and asking that they purge their rolls will create chaotic results and further undermine Floridians' confidence in the integrity of our elections."

"Given that this process fails to meet basic standards of accountability, and that the legal authority for automatic removal of registered voters is currently being challenged in both state and federal court, it is irresponsible to proceed so quickly and with so little room for oversight," the letter reads.

At a press conference with Internicola yesterday, Deutch, who represents Florida's 19th district, urged Scott to suspend the purge.

"This process is being rushed just weeks before our August elections. This list is riddled with errors," he said. "We cannot sit idly by while Republicans conflate bloated voter rolls with unsubstantiated claims of mass voter fraud. Keeping our voter registration files up to date should be a year-round process conducted with real oversight, not a last-ditch effort that jeopardizes the rights of legitimate voters."

"We need transparency, we need accountability, and we need legality. It is Governor Scott's exacting responsibility to ensure that. Failure to do so is a total failure, and goes against the grain of fundamental democracy that all of us have fought for," added Hastings, in a statement. "Mr. Internicola fought for us to have this right to vote, and I went to jail for us to have this right to vote. To have somebody come along as a 'Scotty come lately' and decide that he is going to suppress the rights of voters is absolutely insane."

[cullenmac88]

It just amazes me that prior to 2008 The right had no problem with voter fraud issues. Florida in particular has a history of voting rights abuses.Prior to 2008 the right had no problem with out of control spending. Then lo and behold a democrat and a black democrat to boot is elected president and suddenly here come the neocon crusaders. My question is where the hell were all the tea partiers and conspiricy theorists then? This sudden sweep to curb access to the polls is sickeningly transparent. It is clearly a solution in search of a problem.

[amvet1969]

we would not have this problem with the voters right act if white people weren't so discriminatory

they make it worse when they deny it, say it does not exist, blame the minorities and say it happened before their time

i feel lucky to be part of the white population that does not have this racial baggage and freak out over these issues

[American72]

Are you liberals going to try to steal the election by having non citizens and citizens who are not eligible to vote help reelect your Comrade Obama? The fact that ACORN still is in existence under a different name telling me that they will attempt fraud in the Nov. election again. You who posted that the states do not have a right to make certain ONLY eligible voters vote are nuts and unAmerican.

[Robert_G_Ingersoll]

@UnAmerican72

Surely you are just trying to get out front - you brought this up to make us forget about Republicans stealing the election for Bush. But it did not work - I have not forgotten - and Republicans are trying to steal the election again like they did the last time.

[amvet1969]

they don't have to steal it

20.1% white liberals
12.3% blacks
16.7$ hispanics
01.9% native americans

oops that's 50% already
does not count white moderates, asians and others

PS, your world is over, move along please

[Casca0001]

The pro-Constitutional TEA PARTY is beginning to show their muscle, as incumbents are losing their seats. Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana lost his entrenched place, to a Tea Party State Treasurer Mourdock, who is displaying his mettle, by stating that he will fight to secure our borders and ensure that taxpayer dollars are only spent on those legally allowed to live in this nation. Dick Lugar had a long record of fighting aggressively for amnesty for illegal immigrants and was a primary sponsor of the DREAM Act, which would have fast-tracked amnesty for millions of illegal immigrants nationwide. The liberal Democrats have a campaign to undermine the TEA PARTY membership, which the political group is fading away, when actual fact is the numbers are climbing into the millions. Do you want to fight to keep more of your tax money being confiscated in continually coddling either the 20 million plus illegally immigrants settled here, or the millions more that still locate a way to slip into America.

There are a number of measures regular voters can press for?

One: Join your local Tea Party and unseat all the tired incumbents and elect fresh Tea Party leadership. Remove all Senators and House Representatives, who are pro-illegal immigration corrupted by the special interest groups. We should start with a clean slate and investigate the current records of bad politicians-both federal and state at the web site of ALIPAC.

SCRUTINIZE BOTH PARTIES AS THEY HAVE THEIR OWN RANCID AGENDAS? REPUBLICANS CHEAP LABOR! DEMOCRATS MORE VOTERS! FURTHER WITH THE ONCOMING ELECTIONS IN FULL SWING, WE SHOULD BE WARNED THAT NON CITIZENS ARE VOTING AND WILL VOTE IN FEDERAL, STATE, COUNTY AND MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS. THE ONLY WAY TO STARVE THIS OFF FROM FRAUDULENT VOTING, WHICH WILL NOT COME AS NO SURPRISE IS THE EPICENTER OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ONLY THE ISSUANCE OF A FREE GOVERNMENT PICTURE ID WILL OUR DEMOCRACY FREE OF FRAUD.

Two: Demand that House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio and Dave Camp of Michigan, who is Chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee. Americans must insist these lawmakers stop blocking the 50-state H.R.2885 - Chairman Smith's 'Legal Workforce Act'. The E-Verify bill, should concern every jobless American residents, as if put into practice on a national scale would reject illegal foreign workers.

Stop blocking the E-Verify 'The legal Workforce Act' business program, to detect unauthorized workers, so they can be identified and removed.

[Casca0001]

Three: Demand that the Congress amend the 'Birthright Citizenship' so that no baby born in the United States receives immediate citizenship unless one parent is a U.S. citizen or a naturalized citizen. In addition stop Chain Migration as under the present law, the child more or less cements, the rest of the immediate family as a foothold. Thereby adding even more financial pressure on state taxpayers as UNFUNDED MANDATES, to pay not only for the 400.000 babies, smuggled through borders or arrive undetected at international airline arrivals. State Government says little about the (2009) $113 Billion price tag, extorted by the IRS in catering to the families of illegal aliens. No doubt in most American's mind that the dollar figure has raised by now and until the amendment is passed, the payout will escalate?

Four: Stop our Internal Revenue Service issuing child credit money for children who do not even reside in the United States. In fact stop this use by illegal aliens collecting $4.2 Billion dollars of taxpayers' money, for persons who have no legal status to be in the United States.
Five: No more mass importation of poorly skilled foreign nationals and those only STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) workers need apply.

Six: NO more TAX & SPEND government and begin the reduction of federal agencies.

Seven: Build the double layer fence, as previously designed the Bush's administration as the 2006 Secure Fence. To run from San Diego, CA to Brownsville, Texas with every mile festooned with razor barbed wire. In a new detection innovation reporters watched as five people walked north from the Mexican border toward the underground sensor system. When they got within about four hundred feet an alarm sounded and a Google map page popped up showing where the "intrusion" was detected. This Sonic Barrier is exemplary at even detecting low-flying ultra light aircraft, the type now being used by smugglers to haul drugs into the U.S. across the border. Mike King of Border Technology, Inc., is the inventor of the Sonic Barrier (they call it IDENTISEIS™), saying that the system is continuing to undergo testing and development, but it is seemingly more near perfection, than the old sensing units.

Eight: Punish States, counties and cities, which are allowing illegally ordinances and statutes relating to Sanctuary Cities? Cut off federal funding to these locations and prosecute all those responsible for these acts. Criminal aliens are settling in these places and have killed, maimed and molested children.

Don't be confused by the liberal diatribe from the Liberal /Democrat mainstream media, as they are firmly impressed on pushing Obama's plans of Socialist doctrines. We cannot keep importing more and more poverty encouraged by the government welfare placards, that if you can enter illegally, the taxpayers will care for you, from birth to the grave? We are being overwhelmed by persons who cannot speak English; therefore we spend a billion annually on translators. We pay for their children's schooling to K-12 and in many cases college. Then the medical cost for the whole family, who eventually sneak through holes in the border or buy a airline ticket. Then there are no real true dollar figures, for loss of wages or under the table illegal workers; m any real truths are hidden from the public eye.

Start by implementing mandating E-Verify business verification computer program. It is the most effective, simple immigration enforcement identifier, along with the 'Secure Communities' police apprehension application to fingerprint arrests and forward them to Ice and other agencies, that will deter any illegal foreign national from stealing the millions of American jobs. The usual suspects, including high-pressure, pro illegal immigrant groups are out to eliminate these powerful programs, since enforcement of immigration laws. IN A DELIBERATE MOVE OR NOT, IT HAS BEEN CLEARLY SHOWN THAT LEGISLATORS IGNORED THE ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION INVADERS, BY NOT CLARIFYING THAT ILLEGAL ENTRY AS A FELONY? HOWEVER I WILL KEEP ON REMINDING VOTERS, IT'S TAXPAYERS MONEY THEY ARE SPENDING ON FOREIGN NATIONALS, ESPECIALLY IN THE SANCTUARY STATES. E-Verify has proved its merit which many treasonous lawmakers never predicted it would catch-on, with any credibility. Even now it has a success rate of 98 percent and 300.000 honest business owners are now using the program. Thus they are saving themselves from ICE audits, large fines, asset loss and even a term in prison.

Now Politicians are trapped with E-Verify because the American citizenry are fully perceptive of its use. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't be on our guard, with pro-illegal immigrant legislators such as Nevada's Sen. Harry Reid, California's Governor Jerry Brown who want to tax their legal residence even more, to subsidize the illegal alien occupation in their states.

[amvet1969]

blah blah blah

[bigtiny99]

uh did you say something? i fell asleep

[dreamymiss100]

"To have somebody come along as a 'Scotty come lately' and decide that he is going to suppress the rights of voters is absolutely insane.""
------------------
Ummmmm wouldn't you actually call that criminal????

[BuckeyeChuck]

"Voters are notified by letter that they have been identified as potentially ineligible to vote, and have thirty days upon receipt of the letter to provide documentation of their citizenship or face removal from the polls"
I thought the repugs where against government run amok, I guess if they can use government to screw the average American it's OK.

[mrclean816]

Republicans live in fantasy. They have no idea what the real world is like. They're racist "in private". They don't care what they say or do as long as they can get away with it and look "GOOD".

[American72]

No person who does not have a valid voter registration card should be allowed to vote. Only American citizens who register to vote have the right to vote. Remember ACORN? the fraud was very widespread with ACORN getting homeless people who were not registered voters to vote the Democrat ticket. ACORN is still live and well but under a new name. We need to rid this country of Obama and his socialist administration. Talking with a lady who lived in Poland under communism today saying her mother grabbed a cross off a wall in the hospital as the communist were removing all of them, hid it, remind us of Obama adm. /Walter Reed Hospital saying no bibles or religious articles could be in any of the rooms at WRH and when Obama adm. told the head of the National Cemeteries that no religious event could take place when a veteran was buried....Comrade obama must GO<

[Godwinslaw]

This is outrage. It should be called what it is-a citizen voter purge.

[sjc_1]

Jeb Bush allowed Harris to take thousands of people off the voter roles in 2000. The list purge was done by an out of state company that warned it was not a verified list.

Harris said no problem, never verified the list and denied people the right to vote that had done nothing to disqualify them from voting.

Then the Supreme Court had the gall to declare "equal protection" as a reason to stop the vote count, while thousands of Republican absentee ballots were "corrected" for errors so they would not be rejected.