Bob McDonnell's Time Machine

You'd think after his massive gaffe belittling slavery's role in the Confederacy that Virginia's Republican governor, Bob McDonnell, would lie low, or at least have the grace to not go around bringing up images of disenfranchising the rights of his constituents.  Sadly, you would be wrong.

McDonnell wants to change the process by which non-violent felons apply to have their voting rights restored, the Washington Post reported over the weekend. Whereas before, applicants had had to fill out a one-page form, making the process almost automatic, they now will have to submit an essay outlining their contributions to society since their release.

Advocates for the poor say this will result in far fewer people having their rights restored. Kent Willis, an ACLU official in Virginia called the essay requirement "a nearly insurmountable obstacle'' for people with a limited education. And he added that many felons would be intimidated, reducing the number of applicants.

The Secretary of the Commonwealth, Janet Polarek, whose office handles the applications, told the Washington Post that the new system "gives all applicants the opportunity to have their cases heard and have their full stories told."

But the move has provoked an outcry. The Virginia Black Legislative Caucus called the move "a horrific step back towards the era of Jim Crow." One member of the caucus told the Post: "This is designed to suppress the rights of poor people." 

Only two states make felons who have served their time reapply for voting rights:  Virginia and Kentucky (Way to go, Bluegrass State.  Again.)  McDonnell is clearly making it more difficult for these folks to get those rights restored, when in virtually any other state, serving your time is enough.

But now, McDonnell's office is saying all of this is a big misunderstanding.

A spokesman for the governor, a Republican, told the Washington Post that letters sent to over 200 felons, telling them that they would now have to submit an essay as part of the application process -- a process that previously had been almost automatic -- were sent in error, and that the essay idea was just a "draft policy proposal."

The bigger point is this:  Only these two states add extra punishment.  Now Virginia is trying to make it even worse in a cynical and callous attempt to single out the uneducated and keep them off the voter rolls.

But hey Virginia, you elected the guy.  You said the Democrats just weren't good enough anymore.  You got the alternative.

Enjoy your time machine to the 19th century.