The Trump administration is trying to force states to turn over their voter rolls. Many have assumed his efforts were tied to the midterm elections and the president’s desperation to avoid becoming a lame-duck president, but the real intent is far more long-term and sinister.
The Brennan Center reported on a confidential memorandum of understanding that the administration was sending to states, demonstrating that the administration wanted to have voter rolls so it could pressure states to carry out a national voter purge.
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Via: The Brennan Center:
The agreement explains that the DOJ plans to conduct its own analysis of state voter files and then ask those states to remove specific voters, something the federal government has never done before. This would upend the American system of election administration. It is the states, not the federal government, that have the statutory authority – not to mention the expertise – to add and remove voters from the rolls. States also have procedures in place to prevent eligible voters from being wrongfully removed.
Yet the agreement provides that the DOJ will “test, analyze, and evaluate the States’ decisions.” [voter rolls]» and send each participating state a list of electors who must be removed within 45 days.
If states followed through on this request, they would violate several federal election laws. So far, only red states like Alaska and Texas have turned over their voter records while other red states like Tennessee and South Dakota have refused. All blue states and swing states refused.
The Trump administration has been suing states to try to obtain their voter rolls, and on Tuesday in Michigan they suffered a big loss.