Maine

Republicans just can't figure out what they want to do with young voters.

We see some momentum behind actually courting young people, which Sarah discusses in her most recent post. Conservative media outlets like Fox News, the National Review, and the Washington Examiner, are hot on Margaret Hoover's book (the great-granddaughter of Depression-inducing President Herbert Hoover), which argues that Millennials are sympathetic to the fundamental principles of conservatism and that the GOP should accordingly engage these young people. Sarah does a pretty good job of explaining why Hoover is misguided in her analysis, but the GOP establishment seems to be embracing her argument. And you know what? The civic engagement-enthusiast in me doesn't necessarily mind that; at least young people appear to be the target of some kind of outreach effort.

But while Hoover is feeling the love from conservative media, Republican officials across the country are doing everything they can to keep young people from exercising their rights as citizens. In the name of eradicating voting fraud (there are 44 one-millionths of one percent of votes impacted by voter fraud), these Republicans are actively intimidating and restricting the rights of the very same Millennials Hoover wants to attract to the Republican ranks.

The latest example? Maine Republican Party Chairman Charlie Webster, who is apparently clueless on election law.

Maine Republican Party Chairman Charlie Webster is claiming that college students who pay out-of-state tuition rates and vote in state are committing voter fraud.

At a press conference at the Maine State House, Webster gave the media a list of over 200 students -- their names redacted -- who paid out-of-state tuition rates but were registered to vote in the state.

[...]

...Webster provided absolutely zero evidence that the students -- the vast majority of whom were born in the late 80s and early 90s, based on Webster's list -- voted both in their home state and in Maine.

Webster doesn't understand that just because students are not originally from Maine does not mean that they aren't afforded the right to participate in the community where they live (provided they do not vote in their home state and in Maine). The Sun Journal, a Maine newspaper covering the story, describes it well.

According to Maine state law, students are eligible to register to vote in the municipality in which they attend school, as long as they have established residency there. There is not a period of time required for a person to establish residency. The University of Maine System has different guidelines to establish student residency. A student may only be granted in-state tuition if he or she has proven that she has established residency for reasons other than academic, regardless of the length of time that he or she has lived in Maine.

So yes, there are absolutely cases in which students, deemed as "out of state" by the University of Maine, would be legally and correctly registered to vote in Maine.

Again, all this is on top of other moves across the country to disenfranchise young people and minorities. Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, for example, recently shepherded a law through the state legislature that would require young people to secure a photo ID in order to vote. And now he just announced the closing of 10 DMV bureaus, making it harder for young people to get those photo IDs. And it's not just a coincidence that most of these closures are happening in traditionally Democratic areas, while other DMV offices are seeing their hours extended by the governor.

Hoover might be persuading some of the Republican establishment that appealing to young voters is the trendy thing to do. But the GOP isn't about to persuade young people, who are seeing Mitt Romney-like waffling from the Grand Old Party. Are you interested in us or not? You can't have it both ways.

The "DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service.  With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!

[Note from Kyle de Beausset: Selvin wrote this letter right before he got into a minor car accident on April 9, 2010.  He was set to get his high school diploma in June but has been in detention ever since.  I have chosen reproduce Selvin's letter as I found it in his empty room, rather than polish his slight grammatical errors, to allow his character to shine through.]

Dear President Barack Obama,

From the bottom of my heart, I plead to my God that you and your entire family receive blessings from the highest God while you are reading this letter.  I admire and thank you for the great labor that you are fulfilling as a president in this big nation.  My name is Selvin Ovidio Arevalo.  I came to this country when I was 15 years old.  I came from Guatemala to this country to fulfill my dreams because I always have believed that this is a country of many opportunities for those whom want to succeed.

Since I came to this country, I have been going to school to learn and enhance my English.   Three years ago, I enrolled with Adult Education in Portland, ME, for my high school diploma.  Finally, in this June 2010, I shall have my high school diploma.  I am already enrolled in college transition.  I wish that at the end of this yar, I can go to college, but what concern me about is getting financial aid.  I cannot qualify for any financial aid because I am not legal in this country.  The reason that I write you is to plead you for a solution to my problem.  I have been a Christian since I was a kid.  For eight years, I have been praying to my God to touch the heart of the leaders of this country to provide me legalization.  I think that I have three important reasons for why I want to be legal in this country.  First reason: I want to go to college and have a degree of computer science and more.  Second: I am one of the leaders of a Christian church in Portland, Maine.  I am the treasurer of the church, a musician; I play instruments in the chorus of my church, and a youth leader.  Third: I have not seen my family (parents, sisters, and brother) for eight years.  I have shed tears for them, but I am waiting until a legalization to go to see them.

I appreciate and thank you for spending your time reading this letter.  Once again, I plead you for a solution to my problem.  My faith is great; I believe that one day I am going to be legal in this country.  Then my dreams will become true.  Once again, thank you for your good will and I hope you have a wonderful time.  May the peace of God be with you forever and ever!

Sincerely,
Selvin Arevalo Ovidio

How you can help Selvin:

Right now, the focus should still be on stopping the deportation of Ivan Nikolov, but if you would like to stay up to date on Selvin's case you can:

1. "Like" his Facebook page
2. Join the Facebook group "We Are Selvin"
3. Follow Citizen Orange for more updates

The "DREAM Now" letter series is inspired by a similar campaign started by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell.  The letters are produced by Kyle de Beausset at Citizen Orange with the assistance of America's Voice.  Every Monday and Wednesday DREAM-eligible youth will publish letters to the President, and each Friday there will be a DREAM Now recap. 

1. Sign the DREAM Act Petition
2. Join the DREAM Act Facebook Cause
3. Send a fax in support of the DREAM Act
4. Call your Senator and ask them to pass the DREAM Act now.
5. Email kyle at citizenorange dot com to get more involved

Below is a list of previous entries in the DREAM Now Series:

Mohammad Abdollahi (19 July 2010)
Yahaira Carrillo (21 July 2010)
Weekly Recap - Tell Harry Reid You Want the DREAM Act Now (23 July 2010)
Wendy (26 July 2010)
Matias Ramos (28 July 2010)
Weekly Recap - The CHC Has To Stand With Migrant Youth Not Against Us (30 July 2010)
Tania Unzueta (2 August 2010)
Marlen Moreno (4 August 2010)
Weekly Recap - The Ghost of Virgil Goode Possesses the Republican Party (9 August 2010)
David Cho (9 August 2010)
Ivan Nikolov (11 August 2010)
Yves Gomes (16 August 2010)

Rep. Alex Cornell du Houx, a young state legislator in Maine, Iraq War veteran, and National Committeeman of the Maine Young Democrats, has authored an excellent piece on the Employee Free Choice Act in the Times Record.

The economic challenges Mainers and Americans face are diverse and serious. I wonder how we honor the men and women who fight to protect our way of life when we allow them to slip through the cracks in an economy where there are fewer and fewer opportunities. I wonder how crippled the economic futures of young men and women will be by the reckless and irresponsible decisions that created the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression. I wonder what steps our elected leaders will take to rebuild an economy that works for everyone.

While Wall Street only recently went into crisis mode a few months ago, working families have been feeling the pain of our imbalanced economy for years. American workers have generated soaring productivity over the last 25 years, but wages have gone flat. Too many working families have been forced to turn to second jobs, credit cards and toxic loans just to stay afloat.

Meanwhile, the corporate executives have squandered workers’ increasing profitability on their own jet-setter lifestyles.

Thankfully, we have a president who is committed to standing with us in confronting the greatest economic crisis of our lives. If there’s one thing that really strikes me about President Obama, it’s his understanding of what Americans are going through. He doesn’t need economists to tell him that working families have been stretched to the limit — in many cases, past the limit — just trying to make ends meet.

Workers must have the tools to level the playing field if we are ever going to build an economy that works for everyone. We need the Employee Free Choice Act.

This common-sense piece of legislation would give workers the freedom to join a union without intimidation and bargain collectively for better wages and benefits.

The entire article is worth a read: Employee Free Choice Act: A sustainable stimulus