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GOP senators ask [Obama's Sec of Defense] Panetta to make sure troops can vote
Washington Times ^ | September 7, 2012 | Shaun Waterman

Posted on 09/08/2012 2:20:40 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife

Six Republican senators are asking Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta personally to intervene to ensure that U.S. troops stationed away from home get the chance to register and vote in the upcoming election.

They say Pentagon officials are ignoring a 2009 law that ordered the military to set up a special voting-assistance office at every U.S. base around the world, to make sure troops can negotiate the confusing patchwork of 50 different sets of state registration and absentee voting requirements, and get their ballots mailed in time.

“The price of [the Department of Defense‘s] failure to follow the law will likely be paid this November by military service members and their families, whose voting rights were to have been safeguarded by this provision,” wrote U.S. Republican Sens. John Cornyn of Texas, Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, John Barrasso of Wyoming, Richard Burr of North Carolina, Saxby Chambliss of Georgia and James Inhofe of Oklahoma.

“Many of the on-base voter assistance offices that do exist are grossly inadequate, and at least half of them are either closed or completely unstaffed,” states the letter, sent to Mr. Panetta Friday.

“We request a timely response on what you intend to do to ensure that our military service members and their families receive the voter assistance they need in order to participate in the democratic process this November,” the letter concludes......

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Front Page News; Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 2012election; military; troops; vote
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

GOP needs to run ads showing how the military vote is being obstructed by the democrats


21 posted on 09/08/2012 6:29:09 AM PDT by uncbob
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To: generally

I have many Jewish friends and the conservative ones also do not understand the Dem connection especially when one sees how Israel get’s treated in general . The one basic thing I see missing in most politicians on each side today is basic honesty . That’s why I believe they are scared to death of Sarah Palin ,,,, she’s an honest person I belive . She went after corruption even in her own party , shared the oil profits with her constituates . She speaks plainly and doesn’t sugar coat the bad news and that scares the crap out of most reps in congress .


22 posted on 09/08/2012 6:57:41 AM PDT by Lionheartusa1 (-: Socialism is the equal distribution of misery :-)
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To: jsanders2001

As they say, “There are no atheists in foxholes.”

Our men and women in uniform don’t have to be polled to find out if God should be included in their “platform.”


23 posted on 09/08/2012 7:02:06 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

Lost ballots, stamped in the wrong spot, didn’t pass through the proper mail bag, didn’t cross a T or dot and I, smudged check mark, past due date, blah, blah, blah. They can vote but that doesn’t mean their votes will be counted correctly. Just like ours won’t be counted correctly somewhere over in Spain under Soros’ rule.


24 posted on 09/08/2012 7:19:10 AM PDT by bgill
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

A friend of mine who is a research librarian (compulsively looks everything up to get the facts right) and a military wife with a deployed husband, says:


“I appreciate the concern of well intentioned people who enacted the requirement of voting assistance offices for absentee military personnel. However, no additional funding was provided for this service, and it is the military’s job to prov
ide it. So, it becomes an additional duty for personnel, which means they’re not doing their assigned job while staffing the voter help desk. Honestly, bases don’t need a walk-in voting assistance office. The forms could easily be distributed to family support services where they could be made available along with computer access to EAC.gov - most, if not all of these offices already provide free internet access to personnel and their dependents. The most important piece of information that must be gotten to all military personnel is that they MUST submit a new FCPA (absentee ballot request) prior to the November election. This is a NEW requirement that most active duty military voters do not know nor understand why. Walk-in offices squirreled away wherever the base can afford to put them will not solve this communication problem.”

She advised that members of the military should go online at fvpa.gov to request their FCPA form. Right away.

Now is the time to get this info out to your deployed friends and relatives.


25 posted on 09/08/2012 8:11:06 AM PDT by married21 (As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.)
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To: AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Berosus; bigheadfred; Bockscar; ColdOne; Convert from ECUSA; ...

Thanks Cincinatus’ Wife.


26 posted on 09/08/2012 10:47:53 AM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: married21
Federal Voting Assistance Program FVAP

Bump!

27 posted on 09/08/2012 11:27:07 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
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Comment #28 Removed by Moderator

To: albie

You SAID it. This is Cornyn’s usual tap dance. He is too cool for school until about a year out from his own re-election! The rest of the time he is chairman of this-or-that committee and just can’t possibly make a peep on anything “political”. He is simply working on his resume for re-election.

Primary Cornyn!


29 posted on 09/08/2012 1:04:19 PM PDT by RitaOK
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To: Delhi Rebels

Huh?

Republicans seeking enforcement of constitutional requirements which eliminate the dead and foreigners from the ballot box is a problem for you?


30 posted on 09/08/2012 1:09:50 PM PDT by RitaOK
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To: Delhi Rebels

-——The GOP is trying to suppress Democrat votes and the Democrats are trying to suppress Republican votes.-——

BS....I know not a single conservative who wants to suppress a legitimate legal vote..... I want every citizen who is eligible to vote....to vote...It’s their privilege

Take that liberal talking point crap back to the bowels to DU...


31 posted on 09/08/2012 1:11:52 PM PDT by Popman (In a place you only dream of Where your soul is always free)
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To: Delhi Rebels

You Haz a Smell.


32 posted on 09/08/2012 1:12:34 PM PDT by dfwgator (I'm voting for Ryan and that other guy.)
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To: married21

Thanks for the info.....I just sent it to my Marine grandson.


33 posted on 09/08/2012 1:42:10 PM PDT by mickie (My grandson is a Marine...God Bless them all!)
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To: RitaOK
Republicans seeking enforcement of constitutional requirements which eliminate the dead and foreigners from the ballot box is a problem for you?

No. Neither does it surprise me that the Democrats retaliate by trying their own stunts to make it harder for natural GOP voting blocks. It's how the game is played these days.

34 posted on 09/08/2012 2:32:17 PM PDT by Delhi Rebels (There was a row in Silver Street - the regiments was out.)
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To: Popman
BS....I know not a single conservative who wants to suppress a legitimate legal vote..... I want every citizen who is eligible to vote....to vote...It’s their privilege

Of course you do. No doubt the Democrats say the same.

35 posted on 09/08/2012 2:33:20 PM PDT by Delhi Rebels (There was a row in Silver Street - the regiments was out.)
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To: Just mythoughts

No time for that! Too busy with steroids in baseball, etc/s


36 posted on 09/08/2012 3:15:50 PM PDT by jch10 (America needs some R and R!)
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