Dissecting Republicans' motives

Here at Blast Off!, I regularly chastise Republicans for fomenting hate and fear and using them to gain an electoral advantage. But thanks to their recent election-related activity here in Florida, I've found the proof of what I've suspected all along -- Republicans are motivated not by any great desire to "do what's best" for the state or the country or the citizenry, but instead by a crass need to maintain power at all costs.

Last week, the Florida blogosphere was abuzz with GOP attempts in Tallahassee to legislate new ways to suppress voter turnout. It's a long-standing tradition that Republicans want to keep people from the polls, believing that the fewer people who vote, the more likely they are to win. However, rarely have there been such overt attempts in the Legislature -- indeed, in any legislature -- to prevent large blocs of otherwise eligible people from exercising their constitutional right to vote.

Fortunately, those bills will not get to the governor's desk -- at least not this year. So now the GOP is aiming its legislative might at a perfectly reasonable effort to outlaw gerrymandering -- the drawing of legislative districts in such a way that one party is favored over the other -- and, predictably, opposing it for everything they're worth. Here's how Mark Ferrulo, executive director of Progress Florida, explains the situation:

One overlooked but critical repercussion of gerrymandered districts is that even after they are elected, legislators don’t feel beholden to their constituents because their seats are so safe. So, not only does gerrymandering deny voters a proper voice on Election Day, but their influence is compromised every day thereafter as well.

Not surprisingly, the only organized opposition to this proposal has come from members of the Legislature, who unsuccessfully argued before the state Supreme Court that the redistricting amendment shouldn’t qualify for the 2010 ballot.

Sen. Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, suggested that redistricting reform would give judges too much power over legislators, and that “elected officials are more responsive” to voters. But this is twisted logic since current redistricting rules have only made legislators less beholden to the public.

By the way, Haridopolos is in line to lead the next redistricting effort.

Well, there's a surprise. Mike Haridopolos opposing access to the polls is about as unexpected as the sunrise. The Brevard senator, like the rest of his ilk in the state Legislature, only wants to keep a firm grip on the controls of power. There is literally no way that Republicans credibly can show that their position here is the best thing for the people of Florida, just as there was no way to justify reducing access to the ballot for the elderly and minorities.

Yet that's exactly what the GOP will try to do. They'll come up with flowery explanations and shift the blame, and the real losers if the fair districting proposal is defeated will be the people of Florida. When are we collectively going to learn that Republicans only want what's good for themselves, not for everyone? It's as simple as this: Republicans aren't good for democracy.