Florida Republicans are pushing through proposals mandating the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to verify citizenship, marking voters as “unverified” if they cannot, and requiring specific documentation.
Supporters of Florida HB 991 and SB 1334 says the legislation is needed to tighten voter registration requirements by mandating proof of U.S. citizenship, targeting potential non-citizen voting.
But groups like the ACLU of Florida and the Florida Democratic Party continue to use the race card as their way of opposing this bill.
“This is a voter suppression bill, full stop,” said Keisha Mulfort, deputy director of communications at the ACLU of Florida.
A press release from Nikki Fried, state chair of the Chair of the Florida Democratic Party read, “The Florida Democrats Sound Alarm on Attacks on the Freedom to Vote Moving through the Legislature.”
“The people hurt most by this legislation will be seniors, students, married women, working families, and naturalized citizens – not because they did anything wrong, but because Republicans are scared of the will of the voters,” said Fried.
The Florida Immigrant Coalition put out a headline that read, “HB 991 and SB 1334 Requiring Citizenship Labels on Florida IDs is a serious danger to civil liberties of Floridians.”
In response to the bill, “(It) would require the branding of an individual’s citizenship status on Florida state identification cards and driver’s licenses said the Florida Immigrant Calition.
The group’s Dep. Director Renata Bozzetto said if passed, the state issued ID policy on whether a person is a U.S. citizen or not, would weaponize state identification documents.
“The use of citizenship labels creates a ranking system that invites unequal treatment. “State-issued IDs are meant to verify identity and driving privileges, not to serve as a tool for public classification or immigration enforcement,” said Bozzetto.
Talk Radio and Florida Daily legal commentator Ron Davis chuckles when he hears the opposition making claims that voter ID does more harm than good.
“The comments made by the left are laughable,” Davis said. “How do you function or survive without having a proper ID? Would somebody please tell me? You want to go to school, drive, shop, do banking, even those receiving government support, all, must show a valid ID.”
