One of the worst aspects of our society today has to be the advent of “social media,” for it has robbed us of our geniality, manners, decorum, and ability to think critically instead of just react in a knee-jerk fashion to things we see online.
Case in point: A recently tweeted meme from Left-wing advocacy group Public Citizen caught the eye of many because it appeared to indicate that voter ID laws in Texas were absurd.
“Your reminder that in Texas, you can vote with a gun permit but not a student ID,” said a Sept. 1 tweet from the group, showing a concealed handgun license and a student ID side-by-side.
https://twitter.com/Public_Citizen/status/1167939435830247425
The purpose of the tweet and the meme, of course, is to insinuate that Texas is backwater and foolish, that guns are more important to the culture there than an education, and the Lone Star state is somehow discriminating against students.
But as many people pointed out in responses to the tweet, the state law is actually premised on very good case law and practical experience.
For one, a Twitter user pointed out, to receive a concealed carry permit in Texas a person has to attend a lengthy class and then pass two tests. Also, residents must prove they are citizens because the concealed carry permit is an official state document. In addition, anyone receiving a carry permit has been subjected to an FBI background check.
Meanwhile, non-citizens can attend colleges and universities in Texas the same as they can any other state in the union. So a student ID does not convey or prove citizenship status. (Related: Dem lie debunked: Liberal group finds voter ID laws DON’T suppress minorities, turnout.)
That said, the original Public Citizen tweet was retweeted by none other than Democratic Socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, who obviously doesn’t know very much about student and concealed carry IDs in Texas — since she’s not from there and doesn’t represent a single person in the Lone Star State.
Left doesn’t complain about needing an ID to board a plane
According to Texas statutes, there are other requirements to receiving a concealed carry permit that would require citizenship or legal residence status, such as having the right, by law, to buy a gun (under both federal and state laws) in the first place.
That said, there are at least 13 states that do accept student ID cards as acceptable forms of identification for the purposes of voting, most requiring a photo on the card.
This isn’t the first time the far Left has attempted to make a big deal out of the fact that Texas allows concealed carry IDs to be acceptable forms of voter identification but not student IDs. Back in late October 2014 The New Republic complained about the statute:
Texans casting a ballot on Monday, when early voting begins, will need to show one of seven forms of photo ID. A concealed handgun license is okay, but a student ID isn't. The Supreme Court on Saturday allowed Texas to go forward with this controversial voter ID law. A federal judge had previously struck down the law, arguing that it could disenfranchise 600,000 voters or a full 4.5 percent of registered voters, many of them black and Latino.
Mind you, the only ID that Democrats appear to oppose is one required to vote. We don’t see Left-wing groups complaining about federal rules requiring an ID to get on a plane or into a federal building. We don’t see them whining about requiring an ID to buy liquor or cigarettes. They’re not complaining about having to show ID to get into a sporting event or any of a half-dozen other instances.
Just when we vote. Almost as if they are endorsing voter fraud or something.
Nah. That couldn’t be it.
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