Georgia's law requiring positive voter ID law was struck down by a state judge earlier. He will not get a chance to strike this one down. The US House of Representatives today approved a bill that would require voters to provide a valid ID that proves US citizenship in order to vote. The bill specifies that the states must provide the IDs for free to those who cannot afford them.

Anyone who tries to claim this is tantamount to a "poll tax" - as some are already doing, by the way - are covering for voter fraud. They know it. So do the American people. I want every, single legal voter to be able to vote exactly as they choose. But I do not one one, single fraudulent vote or fraudulent voter. This law, even though it pertains only to Federal elections, is a huge step toward stopping voter fraud. Period.

The 228-196 House vote on a new photo ID plan and the Senate's consideration of the fence were both part of a get-tough policy on illegal immigrants that Republicans have embraced after Congress' failure to agree on broader legislation that would set a path for undocumented workers to attain citizenship.

House GOP leaders have insisted that tighter borders and tougher laws must precede more comprehensive immigration changes. The House passed the fence bill last week and plans votes Thursday on other enforcement measures: to increase penalties for people building tunnels under the border, make it easier to detain and deport immigrant gang members and criminals and clarify the ability of state and local authorities to detain illegal immigrants.

Republican sponsors of the voter identification bill said it was a commonsense way to stop fraud at the polls. People need photo IDs to board planes, buy alcohol or cash checks, said Rep. Vernon Ehlers, R-Mich., chairman of the House Administration Committee. "This is not a new concept."

"This is what Americans want," said Rep. John Mica R-Fla., "They want safe borders and they want safe ballots."

But Democrats assailed the legislation, saying it could hurt minorities, the poor and the elderly — groups that tend to vote Democratic — who might have trouble producing a photo identification.

"This bill is tantamount to a 21st century poll tax," said Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md. "It will disenfranchise large number of legal voters."

Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., said he was initially denied a voter ID required under a Missouri state law because he doesn't have a driver's license and couldn't immediately produce a passport or birth certificate. His congressional ID card was not accepted.

A Missouri court earlier this month struck down the state law, and on Tuesday a state superior court judge in Georgia ruled that that state's law requiring a photo ID was an unconstitutional condition for voting.

The bill would require everyone to present a photo ID before voting in federal elections by 2008. By 2010 voters would have to have photo IDs that certified they were citizens. In response to criticism that this would be a burden for the poor, the bill stipulates that states must provide the identification cards free of charge to those who can't afford them.

Notice the arrogance of Representative Skelton? He was not carrying ID that he would have been required to show to cash a check and he's outraged, outraged I say, because he couldn't obey the laws of his home state. What a blatant bit of hypocrisy that was.

You know, the Democrats make a great storm and stink accusing others of voter fraud. But they make an even bigger storm and stink over a provision that would curb at least some of the most egregious offenses. My question is: why are they so foolish and arrogant as to believe the average voter does not see that for what it patently is? Support for voter fraud and rigged elections.

Cross post from Blue Crab Boulevard