• If you are having problems logging in please use the Contact Us in the lower right hand corner of the forum page for assistance.

Homeless Voting Democrat

Mike

Well-known member
Groups to register homeless to vote
Montgomery-Advertiser
By Markeshia Ricks • August 18, 2008

John Cook Thomas would like to cast his vote in the November election for Barack Obama.


"He's my man," the 67-year-old said. "I like him because he seems like he's honest and for change."

Despite living in the Salvation Army's homeless shelter, Thomas pays attention to politics and he plans to register to vote.

And advocates for the homeless and for voting are encouraging people like Thomas to get registered.

"When you're homeless you have a lot of issues you're dealing with," said Michael Stoops, project director for the 'You Don't Need a Home to Vote' campaign. "But some homeless folks are up on current events."

Thomas is one of those who keep up with current events in spite of the other problems in his life. He came to live in the shelter almost four months ago after his disability check was reduced. But he's aware the outcome of the presidential election does have an impact on his life.

Beth Marra, director of Family Promise of Montgomery, said she's planning to get voter registration applications for the people who come to her.

Family Promise of Montgomery mostly helps homeless families that have at least one working parent with no other issues such as mental, physical or substance abuse problems.

"This is really the first time since we've been open that there has been a presidential election," she said. "It's important to have this available to them because they're still citizens. They're working and struggling to get back to stability, but they should still participate in this process because it is their right and responsibility as a citizen," Marra said.

Stoops, who is also the acting executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless, said his organization is asking advocate groups in all 50 states to get people registered.

Special drives will be held Sept. 21-27 to register homeless and low-income people to vote to coincide with the registration deadlines of most states. The last day to register to vote in the November election in Alabama is Oct. 24.

"Homeless people have a right to vote," he said. "They want to be treated like citizens."

Stoops said the National Coalition for the Homeless had to take several states to court for disenfranchising homeless people, but there are no laws restricting homeless people from voting.

"Whether you live on the street or in a shelter, you can still register to vote," he said.

An attorney general's opinion confirms that the homeless can vote in Alabama, though the state does have language on the books to deny the vote to convicted felons and those who are deemed mentally incompetent.

An opinion written by then Attorney General Bill Pryor, said as long as a homeless person can identify a place where they can receive mail, and it's a place within a voting precinct, they can vote.

George Noblin, chairman of the Montgomery County Board of Registrars, said the rationale behind needing an address to
vote is so that his office will know how to contact the person.

"We have to have a good address so once they register we can send them their voter identification card," he said. "It tells them where to go vote."

While the voter list also is used for jury duty selection, providing a physical address is important because it allows voting officials to contact someone if there is a problem with their application.

Capt. Roy Harris, commander of the local Salvation Army, said he hadn't thought about getting registration forms, but it's a good idea.

Already thinking ahead, he said he would need help transporting people to the polls.

Thomas said he actually would have to get his voting rights restored because he has a felony conviction, but he wants to get it all cleared up as soon as possible.

"I would like to try to do that this year in time for November," he said.
 

Sandhusker

Well-known member
""He's my man," the 67-year-old said. "I like him because he seems like he's honest and for change." "

"Despite living in the Salvation Army's homeless shelter, Thomas pays attention to politics and he plans to register to vote. "

How the heck can you be paying attention and think Obama is honest?
 

VanC

Well-known member
Speaking of the homeless:


By Warner Todd Huston

Have you noticed that the old media standby story of the homeless has not been pursued much in the last four or five years? Some may remember how the media constantly bemoaned the state of the homeless during the Reagan and H.W. Bush years in office, and how the media constantly used this tale as a club with which to beat those two Republican presidents over the head. Folks like Rush Limbaugh, I recall, noticed how this standard media go-to story disappeared once Clinton became president and postulated that it would fast return once G.W.Bush took the Oval Office. But, the homeless has not made much of a media come back. In fact, that meme has virtually evaporated as a major media focal point. And there is a reason for that. Under the Bush administration, homelessness has actually decreased by 12% per year between 2005 and 2007.

David Frum of NRO found the lack of media attention of interest as it does us. He notes that this report of the amazing improvement of homelessness, due to the hard work of Bush appointee Phil Mangano, has generally been absent from the media. Saying, "I'll be very curious tomorrow morning to see where and how this story gets placed," Frum wonders if the story will make much ehadway in the old media. He notes that the story didn't make the Washington Post, but that The New York Times did pick it up (and I'll note the AP story as linked above, too).

As Frum says, praise and credit is due both Phil Mangano as well as president Bush himself for appointing Mangano and for allowing him to pursue his transformative program to affect change in the fate of the homeless.


We cannot yet say that Mangano has succeeded. But we can say that as with conservative ideas on crime in the 1990s, the Mangano approach to homelessness has transformed a situation once seen as hopeless by discarding orthodoxies once seen as unquestionable. He and the administration he serves deserve immense credit.



But, as the story develops in the media, there is little doubt that a negative spin is being placed on this welcome news. So far, I've seen two stories (Channel 5, WCVB in Boston, and the Associated Press) that carry a negative take on the news that will most likely become the media's theme. Here is the snippet in its simplest form from the Channel 5 report:


The report doesn't take into account the effects of the foreclosure crisis and recently slowing economy, which could increase the number of homeless families.



This isn't news. It's conjecture, if not an outright claim. But we will see it in every story, I'm sure.

In the AP story we also see it:


Some homeless advocates said HUD's emphasis on the decline in chronic homelessness paints too rosy a picture.

"It's not a true reflection of what's going on among the homeless population," said Michael Stoops, acting executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless. Stoops said there are always some homeless who are not counted, adding that people who are not chronically homeless are getting too little attention from the government.

The report does not take into account the effects of the foreclosure crisis and recently slowing economy. Stoops predicted both will increase the number of homeless families.



If the media bothers much with this story at all, and thus far reports have been far and few between, this will be the refrain most likely offered.
 
Top