SC Gov. Nikki Haley Discusses Voter ID in “Black Lives Matter” Speech

Text of the speech:

One of the lessons of the flag controversy is that if we stop shouting and start listening, we get more accomplished. We should all listen to each other more – we will all benefit from walking in someone else’s shoes.

A good example in the civil rights arena is in voter ID laws. There are those who act is if any effort whatsoever to maintain the integrity of the voting process is a racist attack on civil rights. Well that’s just not so.

Requiring people to show a photo ID before they vote is a reasonable measure. It’s not racist. If everyone was willing to stop shouting, and stop trying to score race-baiting political points, we could reach common ground.

I want everyone who is eligible to vote, to vote. I now count Reverend Jesse Jackson as a friend. I got to know him through the funerals. He’s a native South Carolinian, who has done some amazing things in his career with voter registration.

I will say this: any time Reverend Jackson wants to do a voter registration drive in South Carolina, I will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with him. I want to make it easy for everyone who is rightfully eligible to vote to do so.

For most people, showing a picture ID is no burden. But I recognize that it is a burden for some. And those people are disproportionately poor, elderly, or disabled – which is why in South Carolina we offered rides to any citizen, anywhere in the state, to get to a local DMV and get a free picture ID.

So let’s not throw out voter ID laws – the integrity of our democracy is too important for that. But let’s figure out ways to make it easy and cost-free for every eligible voter to obtain a photo ID. That way, everyone who wants to vote, can vote.

Share this: