Paxton, U.S. spar over intent of voter ID law
Threatened by explosive growth in minority populations, Texas Republicans passed a voter identification law in 2011 that intentionally discriminated against Latino and black voters, who tend to favor Democrats, Obama administration lawyers told a federal judge.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton disagreed, arguing that the strict voter ID law known as Senate Bill 14 was intended to combat fraud and increase flagging public confidence in election results.
“They have no evidence that any legislator acted with a racially discriminatory purpose, let alone that SB 14’s proponents engaged in a silent conspiracy to discriminate against minority voters,” Paxton told the judge.
The dueling legal briefs, filed Friday, were the latest step in a legal challenge that is moving along two separate tracks since the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in July that the law had a disproportionate impact on minority voters because they were less likely to have an acceptable government-issued ID, such as a driver’s license, U.S. passport, state handgun permit or military ID card.
Read more: http://www.mystatesman.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/paxton-us-spar-over-intent-of-voter-id-law/ntCFx/