“People have to understand that we are not opposed to photo identification in a vacuum,” he said, but it must not be used “to disenfranchise” people for racial or “partisan reasons.”  While some GOP lawmakers may have a “good faith” concern here, Holder said, others are disingenuously “using it for partisan advantage.”

“The reality is that all the studies show that this whole question of ballot integrity, in-person voter fraud – simply does not exist,” he stressed. Given all the data, Holder contended, Republicans’ fixation on voter ID suggests “a remedy in search of a problem.”  ”It is being used, in too many instances,” he continued, “to depress the vote of particular groups of people who are not supportive of the party that is advancing these photo ID measures.”

Attorney General Eric Holder, speaking to MSNBC’s Ari Melber