Ky. Gov. Beshear Restores Voting Rights to Over 170,000 Non-Violent Felons

[BarryDonegan]

http://truthinmedia.com/ky-governor-beshear-restores-voting-rights-to-non-violent-felons/

Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear signed an executive order on Tuesday creating a process that provides for the restoration of voting rights to over 170,000 non-violent felons who have paid their debts to society.

[Dr. Dog]

Probably trying to get Conway more voters for his next (failed) campaign.

[Ronin Truth]

Wait till Gov. Beshear gets a load of who the felons vote for, for Governor. :D

[TheTexan]

Wait till Gov. Beshear gets a load of who the felons vote for, for Governor. :D

I would hope that these felons would have the proper amount of appreciation for the huge favor he's doing them here, giving them their votes back.

Serving an 8 year sentence... ok, that sucks. But not to be able to vote for the rest of your life??? That would be horrible.

[TheTexan]

I mean, I can understand why felons shouldn't be able to own weapons, but why shouldn't they be able to vote?

I'm pretty sure voting is a constitutionally protected right, for all Americans, felon or otherwise...

[Ronin Truth]

I mean, I can understand why felons shouldn't be able to own weapons, but why shouldn't they be able to vote?

I'm pretty sure voting is a constitutionally protected right, for all Americans, felon or otherwise...

Where in the CONstitution did you find that opinion?

[Ronin Truth]

I would hope that these felons would have the proper amount of appreciation for the huge favor he's doing them here, giving them their votes back.

Serving an 8 year sentence... ok, that sucks. But not to be able to vote for the rest of your life??? That would be horrible.

I'm not able to vote for the rest of my life, and haven't since 1972, in part because I just refuse to register. No horror about it. :p Piece of cake. <shrug>

[paleocon1]

The Gov is the Enemy of decent folks.

[RDM]

I'm not able to vote for the rest of my life, and haven't since 1972, in part because I just refuse to register. No horror about it. :p Piece of cake. <shrug>

Hopefully, there's more Trump supporters like you.

[Ronin Truth]

Hopefully, there's more Trump supporters like you. I'm no Trump supporter, I'm just here for the laughs.

[puppetmaster]

Good.

[tod evans]

If government employees and subsidy recipients can vote felon votes ought to count double or treble......

[helmuth_hubener]

If government employees and subsidy recipients can vote felon votes ought to count double or treble......

Better would be for none of them to vote.

This is such a blatant cynical move. A cynical, cynical move. Felons vote overwhelmingly for the Democrats, that is just a statistical fact. And so the outgoing governor is going to suddenly let all "non-violent" felons vote -- many of whom are violent, their felony conviction just didn't happen to be for violence -- to pump up the Democratic base and try to make it impossible, long-term, for any Republican freedom-lover to ever win again.

Just low.

[puppetmaster]

The felons I know vote did conservative

[tod evans]

Better would be for none of them to vote.

This is such a blatant cynical move. A cynical, cynical move. Felons vote overwhelmingly for the Democrats, that is just a statistical fact. And so the outgoing governor is going to suddenly let all "non-violent" felons vote -- many of whom are violent, their felony conviction just didn't happen to be for violence -- to pump up the Democratic base and try to make it impossible, long-term, for any Republican freedom-lover to ever win again.

Just low.

A non-violent felon in today's vernacular is going to overwhelmingly be a person imprisoned for drugs.

Who else in this land of "freedumb" (Thanks AF) would know the inner workings of government and have felt the sting of law-n-order politicians?

If as a whole folks of this ilk vote overwhelmingly democrat maybe there's a reason.......

[helmuth_hubener]

maybe there's a reason....... I'm sure there's reasons. Everyone always has reasons for doing what they do. I just know what results. They vote overwhelmingly for Democrats, who are the party for big government (I know, I know, the GOP make gov't bigger, too). That's bad. So this is a bad development for liberty in Kentucky. This will make it much harder for libertarian/conservative candidates and ballot initiatives to win in the future.

Can this treasonous action be reversed?

[Dr. Dog]

The felons I know vote did conservative
I hope they learned English grammar in prison.

[tod evans]

I'm sure there's reasons. Everyone always has reasons for doing what they do. I just know what results. They vote overwhelmingly for Democrats, who are the party for big government (I know, I know, the GOP make gov't bigger, too). That's bad. So this is a bad development for liberty in Kentucky. This will make it much harder for libertarian/conservative candidates and ballot initiatives to win in the future.

Can this treasonous action be reversed?

I disagree with your opinion that this was treasonous.

I also disagree with any legislation that restricts ANY rights of a criminal who has served his/her time, especially gun/voting and travel restrictions.

If there is a legitimate reason that an individual should have any of these God given rights permanently revoked by government then government should bear the cost of continued incarceration.

The idea of two classes of citizens is, too me, far more treasonous than an EX-felon voting...

[Indy Vidual]

They should be allowed to vote.

[helmuth_hubener]

I also disagree with any legislation that restricts ANY rights of a criminal who has served his/her time, especially gun/voting and travel restrictions.
They should be allowed to vote. I am sympathetic to the point of view, I really am... but results matter. Outcomes matter.

It's a nice sentiment, this idea that "Let's be nice and magnanimous to all the felons and give them all the same privileges as anyone else." Once we have a libertarian society, that would be the right way to do it. You've paid for your crime, that's it. But it is not a pressing issue. These people are not being oppressed by not being able to vote. Voting is not a right. It's not like gun ownership. Self-defense is a right. Voting is not. So, as I say, there's no emergency. There's no reason for us freedom-loving people to make any noise calling for this to happen at this time. No one is being oppressed by this policy. Not a single person's freedom is being stepped on, not even lightly, not even a tiny bit.

So, since no one's rights are being violated by prohibiting felons from voting, what should our position be on it if we sincerely love freedom, as I know you do, Tod? I go back to what I said at first: results matter. Outcomes matter. I am a practical man. I am not content to sketch out what freedom would look like in the abstract on a piece of paper and then declare victory. I want to actually live it! I want my grandchildren and my great-great grandchildren to be able to live it! I want actual freedom, not freedom I can read about in an ancient history or philosophy book. Freedom in the real world.

The real world matters. Results matter. Practical realities matter. Here is the practical reality: felons voting makes it harder to get freedom, not easier. In the real, actual place called Kentucky, the real actual chances for real actual freedom just got much, much less by this cynical, partisan act by the outgoing governor. Since no one's real freedoms are being violated either way, the correct position for us to take on this is clear: we should be for the option that helps our cause, not the options that hurts it. Pure practicality. You see? 170,000 felons voting means our people and our issues will have a much harder time winning. Where before we might have won big, by 160,000 votes, now we will lose by 10,000.

Unless it can be reversed. Governor Bevin should declare this policy reversed. Easy come, easy go. If one governor can do it, another can undo it. Then they can start working on an amendment to the Kentucky Constitution to forever prohibit all net tax recipients from voting as well. One by one cut out the bad guys' voting blocks. Let's do that. Let's not give them new ones. Practicality!

[tod evans]

I don't know what will bring today's government crashing down first the social programs that you decry felons vote for or the war programs the law-n-order crowd votes for.

All I know is my kid is getting closer to draft age every year.

I too want freedom, for him more than myself.

This welfare/warfare monstrosity scares the crap out of me because I can see nothing good coming from it.

The ability of the MSM to whip one batch of people into a frenzy over terror or invaders and another group over the poor and oppressed is quite frightening. Even more frightening is government's ability to grow and profit from both groups.

I'm not going to march on Ky. to try and strip voting ability from felons because as I've already said they know and understand government oppression and that's one step toward opposing this government.

[helmuth_hubener]

I'm not going to march on Ky. to try and strip voting ability from felons because as I've already said they know and understand government oppression and that's one step toward opposing this government.

None of us are going to march. I'm just expressing my opinion. Same as you.

It's a good theory, that those who have experienced, who "know and understand" government oppression would be more virulently opposed to it. That just runs out to not be the case. Stockholm Syndrome? I don't know. But the theory must be tossed, because the evidence just does not bear it out. I.e.: It's a good idea, but it's false.

[tod evans]

None of us are going to march. I'm just expressing my opinion. Same as you.

It's a good theory, that those who have experienced, who "know and understand" government oppression would be more virulently opposed to it. That just runs out to not be the case. Stockholm Syndrome? I don't know. But the theory must be tossed, because the evidence just does not bear it out. I.e.: It's a good idea, but it's false.

What if you broke the "felon" demographic down like any other voting demographic?

Men/women/race/etc.......

[Slave Mentality]

If the debt is paid then it's paid. It amazes me to see so many support life long punishment for breaking arbitrary edicts. It's bullshit.

[helmuth_hubener]

What if you broke the "felon" demographic down like any other voting demographic?

Men/women/race/etc.......

I don't know.