* We’ve already talked about this WCIA report…
Republican state senator Darren Bailey (R-Louisville) won praise from several of his social media followers for proposing the state transition to “paper ballots only,” with many of them voicing distrust in the security of elections. […]
Illinois already requires election officials to keep a permanent paper record of every ballot. While most voters use paper ballots, there are some exceptions where voters use technological assistance to pick their preferred candidates.
“There are some where they do use touchscreens, but that produces a paper receipt,” Illinois State Board of Elections spokesman Matt Dietrich explained. “There is a paper record for every single vote that’s cast in Illinois. Not all of them are with pen on paper, and I don’t know how that would work, because disabled people need to use screens.
“There are people who cannot write on a paper ballot,” he said. “Visually impaired people can use audio cues to guide them through a ballot on a touch screen. That wouldn’t be possible under this bill.”
* Sen. Bailey was on Tom Miller’s WJPF show yesterday and discussed the topic…
Interestingly enough, Springfield Democrats come and the biggest problem that they have with this, the biggest [laughs], the biggest gripe is that disabled people will not be able to vote.
* I’ve isolated his comment and included Miller’s (no relation) harsh response…
Tom is usually an even-keeled sort of guy. I’ve never heard him go off on a guest like that.
…Adding… Some folks think Tom was agreeing with Bailey. OK, upon further review I can see the point, but let’s try to stay on topic here.
* Meanwhile, from the rather weird news network OAN…
Illinois state Rep. Chris Miller (R) has become the latest target of cancel culture from the left after he argued securing U.S. elections would be the best way to ensure our elected leaders are not bullying their way into office and abusing their power.
One America’s Christina Bobb has more.
- Henry Francis - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:26 am:
Bailey is told he is deliberating misinterpreting the the facts and insulting the host, and his response is “Well thank you that is exactly right”
And he complains that the Democrats are confused?
Do words and language mean anything?
- Henry Francis - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:27 am:
“Deliberately” - sorry
- Just Me 2 - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:32 am:
First, we have paper ballots for back up. Second, Bailey doesn’t care about the truth if it doesn’t match his rhetoric. Third, Bailey is disgusting to say the biggest reason we shouldn’t adopt better policies is because we don’t care about people with disabilities.
- AndyJD - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:33 am:
Are we sure Tom was being harsh to Bailey or that he believed that the judges and election workers would go to even greater lengths to assist handicapped individuals vote, like reading the ballot to a blind voter?
- CubsFan16 - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:36 am:
I don’t know if it is hilarious or embarrassing that Bailey thought the host was agreeing with him. Probably both.
- Bruce( no not him) - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:40 am:
Darren Bailey, the gift that keeps on giving.
Who is the next group he insults, and doesn’t even realize he insulted them?
- Candy Dogood - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:41 am:
===Illinois state Rep. Chris Miller (R) ===
The fact that this traitor is still in office after supporting a coup attempt of our federal government is an embarrassment.
Chris Miller has still not accounted for his time that afternoon, nor elaborated how he got back to his truck laden with symbols representing an anti-democratic terrorist organization.
A toothless resolution is not enough.
- illinifan - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:42 am:
Tom Miller mentions how persons with disabilities are able to have the ballot brought to them in their car. This misses the point. I think of a friend who lived on a second floor walk up in Chicago. Every time she went to the doctor she had to have the fire department come to carry her down the stairs. Recommending she move was not an option as the rent was so cheap and she could not afford a first floor unit. There are also other persons with disabilities who do not have cars, or elderly in senior homes who were confined due to the virus. These voters should not be disenfranchised. Also the ID issue is crazy. My dad did not have a DL as it expired while confined due to COVID. He could not get a state ID for the same reason. He lived in AZ where you can apply for permanent mail in ballot thank goodness so he could vote. Now they want to stop this. There are so many exceptions but in Bailey’s black and white world he is incapable of seeing this.
- Commisar Gritty - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:43 am:
I’m starting a petition to take a transcript of Sidney Powell’s legal defense stating “No reasonable person could believe I was telling the truth” and pin it to Darren Bailey’s chest like a kindergartener.
- Pundent - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:44 am:
I guess they haven’t heard Sydney Powell’s comments that no reasonable person would believe that fraud occurred in our most recent election. Of course she was clear that “reasonable” was the standard.
- Linus - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:49 am:
Lies, insults and willful misinterpretations: You’ve got to hand it to Sen. Bailey for remaining firmly on brand.
- Dotnonymous - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:51 am:
Darren Bailey (R-Louisville) does not want to be bothered by the pesky disabled voters…don’t forget.
- cermak_rd - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:55 am:
Paper ballots? Has anyone forgotten sharpeegate?
I like the touch screens. Makes it much faster to vote especially when you have 100000 judges to get through (I use the bar associations to choose and determine whether to retain or not even that now is on my phone so I don’t need to bring the print out I always used to). And in suburban Cook we have a paper record left behind.
- Pessimistic - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 11:56 am:
AndyJD - I had the same interpretation of Tom’s comment. I heard him to be suggesting the concern about a disabled individual’s ability to vote was a dog whistle.
- uialum - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 12:06 pm:
Seemed to me like the host is actually getting mad at the claim that Bailey’s bill will make it harder for disabled people to vote since he claims that election workers will do whatever they need to do in order to let them vote.
- Chicago Cynic - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 12:07 pm:
Dear GOP,
Please please please nominate Darren Bailey. Please.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Every single Democrat in the State of Illinois
- Hot Taeks - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 12:21 pm:
I worked the Chicago elections two years ago. While almost everybody voted by paper, we did have one touchscreen and one person with disabilities used it. That is how elections are supposed to work to ensure they are open and accessible to all.
- El Conquistador - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 12:26 pm:
I’m disabled. This doofus is a colossal tool.
- SuburbanRepublican - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 12:27 pm:
As much as I’d like to see a center-right Republican (not many of us left anymore), I almost want to see someone like Bailey get the nomination and lose overwhelmingly. Maybe that will wake the Party up on how to start winning again in Illinois and how to be relevant.
- Rudy’s teeth - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 12:36 pm:
First time I’ve heard Bailey’s voice. It’s jarring. Darren Brain on full display.
- 47th Ward - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 12:37 pm:
===Maybe that will wake the Party up on how to start winning again in Illinois and how to be relevant.===
I’m pretty sure they tried that with Alan Keyes. Didn’t turn out too well if I remember correctly.
- Perrid - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 12:40 pm:
He’s clearly mocking the idea of disabled people being hurt here, but if you hadn’t told me it was a laugh I probably would have thought it was a cough or something. I think he did start laughing and it made him cough or at least clear his throat.
- Arsenal - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 12:59 pm:
==I’m pretty sure they tried that with Alan Keyes. Didn’t turn out too well if I remember correctly. ==
I guess I might argue that it did? After he cratered, they nominated JBT to lead the ticket.
- West Side the Best Side - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 12:59 pm:
Having also heard Bailey’s voice for the first time I’m going to assume he won’t be doing much in person campaigning in the Chicago Metro area.
- Publius - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 1:15 pm:
Even if we did go back to paper ballots and they didn’t like the outcome they would find some other excuse. Someone above mentioned the sharpies. Those can be tampered with also. At this point any time I about My Bailey I think of this guy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocA01hN21Ak
- Glengarry - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 1:35 pm:
Bailey is Luddite that still thinks it’s 1957.
- JS Mill - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 1:41 pm:
==First time I’ve heard Bailey’s voice. It’s jarring. Darren Brain on full display.==
He sounds more like he is from Alabama than Illinois.
- Candy Dogood - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 1:49 pm:
In an afternoon lull, I decided to actually watch the OAN interview with Representative Chris Miller. I figured it might help to post a transcript of the conversation here because I think it’s fascinating that the interview took place — in Studio — in Washington DC and that it is blatantly false and misleading about why Chris Miller was “targeted” by the Left for “supporting his wife.”
In the interview, Chris Miller also makes sure that everyone knows that he’s from a place where you say what you mean, and you say. Whatever impact the Legislature hoped their weak action would have on Chris Miller has not had the effect they hoped. The message clearly wasn’t received about it, and he’s prepared to lie publicly about the circumstances regarding his declaration of war against “Democrat Terrorists.”
This man has no business serving the public in elected office and has betrayed his oath of office.
————————————-
BOBB: Joining Me In Studio, Illinois State Representative Chris Miller. Representative Chris Miller, from Illinois 110th District, is the latest target for the left on zeroing in on conservatives. The Illinois Legislature, which is mostly Democrat, is working on a resolution to to reprimand Representative Miller for being in Washington D.C. on January 6th in support of his wife who is now a freshman congresswoman representing Illinois.
BOBB: Sir, what are your thoughts on cancel culture and this latest attack against you?
CHRIS MILLER: Well it’s pretty incredibly just being, you know, a farmer from a town of 800 people and living– not even living in that town, we have no stop lights, no lines on the street and then all of a sudden we get cast into the center stage for attending the Save America Rally in support of our President, Donald Trump. Which happens to be, he happens to be, extremely popular in my district.
BOBB: And; It seems a little bit out of control that they would attack you and attack your wife the way that they have. Yet, you were representing many people in your district who you were elected to represent, voicing concerns over election integrity. What is the thought on election integrity in your district?
CHRIS MILLER: Well, I think that’s one of the things that has to be addressed before the next election cycle. I know that, I’m 66 years old, and I know, I can remember even as a child, uh, you know, 5, 6, 7 years old, that there was a continual dialogue about the corruption and the cheating that went on in Cook County and the City of Chicago and it continues on to this day. But there has to be a strong resolve to fix the problem. It has to ‘transend’ party lines in order to get to get this done because, like you mentioned, the Re, uh, Republican Party is in a super minority. There has to be a integrity in election so, so we don’t have a repeat of the 2020 election cycle.
BOBB: And now you’re in an interesting position actually being a representative in your state, what are some thing that stage legislatures, whether it’s in Illinois, or other legislatures across – across the states, what are some things you would like to see take place before the next election to help insure integrity?
CHRIS MILLER: Well, huh, you know, one thing, from where I come from, people do do business on a handshake, your word’s your bond, and, and you mean what you say and you say what you mean and some of the things that we have to do, is we have to make sure that legal citizens of the State of Illinois are going to the ballot box, we’ve gotta have photo IDs in order to vote, I mean and there’s some common sense solutions to fix the problems and restore integrity to the ballot box.
- Bruce( no not him) - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 2:19 pm:
==He sounds more like he is from Alabama than Illinois.==
Southern Illinois is closer to Alabama than Chicago. Distance wise, I mean. Cultural….
- Informed Mom - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 2:25 pm:
Bailey has limited experience in the world. Yesterday, I drove my daughter to early vote in our local election. In order for her to vote privately and independently — as is her right in a democracy — she used a DAU (Disability Access Unit). A DAU is much like any other electronic voting unit, except that it has a headset so that the ballot can be automatically read aloud to the user. The use of this technology means that my daughter and countless other people like her are 100% independent while voting and all are assured that their choices are theirs alone. The DAU also has tactile switches and sip-and-puff capability. Many people use these units across the state. A senator should know at least this much about our elections.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 2:48 pm:
Bailey is truly a terrible person.
Politics or not, left, right, the character of Bailey is black and soulless.
It’s not that he does t care about others, Bailey wants to tell you at every turn he doesn’t respect people and will do things derogatory towards others… and laugh while saying he would.
- H-W - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 3:15 pm:
The OANN article is interesting in another sense. It suggests Bailey is being cancelled for questioning electronic balloting.
It seems to me, FOX NEWS being sued for $1.6 B today, along with several other high profile Trump personnel being sued for Billions by Dominion Voting suggests Mr. Bailey is not be “cancelled.” Perhaps he should read the tea leaves.
- Techie - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 3:16 pm:
We know voting machines can be hacked, sometimes pretty easily:
https://www.newsweek.com/how-easy-it-hack-voting-machine-518251
https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomasbrewster/2017/07/29/def-con-hacking-election-voting-machines/?sh=2628fe031d55
I absolutely support making it easy for disabled people to vote - we should be removing barriers to voting, not erecting them.
But we also need to provide a high level of security to our elections, and voting machines being used by all with only a 5% audit is not the way to accomplish that goal.
We should definitely aim to use paper ballots as much as possible, and perhaps as Hot Taeks mentioned above, reserve voting machines for people with disabilities so they have that option if they prefer it.
But to simply accept voting machines as a secure way to run elections without a much more rigorous validation of the results does not make sense. We either need to stop using voting machines as much as possible, or provide a much more robust auditing system than we use today.
- Jibba - Friday, Mar 26, 21 @ 3:28 pm:
==you mean what you say and you say what you mean ==
So he believes that Democrats are terrorists. I believe what this says about him.