Tan Parker wants you to pay your poll tax

There is never a safe moment for Texans when the legislature is in session. Our freshman legislator, and Dick Armey's favorite puppet from District 63, Tan Parker (R - Flower Mound) has co-authored HB 626 - a de-facto POLL TAX.

The bill requires that voters must present a certified copy of a birth certificate which costs $23 from the County Clerk. United States citizenship papers ($200) for naturalized citizens, or a valid unexpired passport. ($97 - $107). When registering, you must present one of these expensive documents (that many Americans do not currently have available) in person, or you must mail it in a business reply envelope to your county registrar.

Pardon me in advance for the rant I'm about to go on, but let me start by saying that it's a good day to be Michael Burgess. Because from now on, Nathaniel "Tan" Parker IV is on my shit list. What in the sam hell are you thinking? You're a grown-ass man! Did you go to college? Did you ever read about the Twenty Fourth Amendment to the constitution?

Look, I understand that we want voters to be citizens. Nobody wants voter fraud. But that's not what this is about. This is about voter suppression. These Republican legislators ADMIT there is "no evidence of extensive voter fraud". They would like you to think this is about preventing double-voting, or illegal alien voting. But in voter registrars' offices across the state, this will amount to nothing short of sheer clusterfu**. Lets think about this: Who stands to have the toughest time with these requirements? Regular people - that's who.
How many married women out there have a certified copy of a document that proves their citizenship and shows their current married name? This bill hurts women.
How many senior citizens can locate their birth certificates, or keep a current passport? This bill hurts seniors.
What about working people who can't take the time off from thier jobs to go apply in person for a certified copy of their birth certificate? This bill hurts working people
How many low-income citizens will work almost 4 1/2 hours at minimum wage just to pay the $23? This bill hurts low-income citizens
What about college students and other young Americans who change their residence more often as they move from school to school, and into the workforce - from dorms to apartments to marriage and then into a house? This bill hurts young people.
How many smart people trust their county government enough to MAIL their passport to the voter registrar? It's an invitation for ID theft. This bill hurts SMART people

This bill is an inconvenience for most people. At a time when voter turnout is so low, and regular Americans from somewhere in the center are turned off to the Democratic process, the Republican radicals have taken it upon themselves to ensure that only "their type" of people can vote.

This bill is about suppressing the vote. Specifically, this bill is about worried Republican power clinging to their last hope for staying in power: preventing reasonable people from bouncing them out of office for their ineptitude at governing this state.

Regardless of what the authors of this dumb-ass bill might say, this is simply NOT needed. The government already knows who the citizens are. When you send in your name and date of birth on your voter registration card, the burden is on the state to verify your status. If the county can pull your birth certificate records and SELL you a copy of your birth certificate rather than simply check its own damn records, then this is a TAX.

The Texas House is set to debate this bill again on April 30th. CALL TAN PARKER NOW AND LET HIM KNOW HE'S NOT FOOLING ANYONE.