Electoral Dysfunction

FOR SPACIOUS SKIES,

Mo Rocca: IT'S MORNING

IN WASHINGTON D.C., HOME OF

THE GREATEST EXPERIMENT

IN SELF-GOVERNANCE SINCE...

WELL, SINCE EVER.

IT'S A NATION WHERE EVERY

PERSON HAS A VOICE AND EVERY

VOICE IS HEARD.

IT'S ONE NATION, UNDER GOD,

INDIVISI...

WELL, YOU GET THE PICTURE.

BUT AMERICA IS AT WAR.

I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT A

SHOOTING WAR LIKE AFGHANISTAN.

I'M NOT EVEN TALKING

ABOUT THE WAR ON TERROR.

NOPE.

AMERICA IS ENGAGED IN A TOTALLY

DIFFERENT KIND OF WAR-- BEING

FOUGHT RIGHT HERE WITHIN OUR

BORDERS-- OVER ONE

OF DEMOCRACY'S MOST SACRED

VOTING.

ON ONE SIDE, FORCES DEVOTED

TO STOPPING WHAT THEY SAY IS

POTENTIALLY MASSIVE

VOTER FRAUD.

TV Reporter: ACORN'S VOTER

REGISTRATION DRIVES ARE UNDER

INVESTIGATION IN SEVERAL STATES.

WE NEED TO KNOW THE FULL

EXTENT OF SENATOR OBAMA'S

RELATIONSHIP WITH ACORN,

WHO IS NOW ON THE VERGE OF MAYBE

PERPETRATING ONE OF THE GREATEST

FRAUDS IN VOTER HISTORY IN THIS

COUNTRY, MAYBE DESTROYING

THE FABRIC OF DEMOCRACY.

ON THE OTHER SIDE, A MOVEMENT

THAT BELIEVES INDIVIDUALS

ARE BEING SYSTEMATICALLY AND

DELIBERATELY DISENFRANCHISED.

Group: THE VOTE! THE VOTE!

PROTECT THE RIGHT TO VOTE!

Bill Clinton: THERE HAS NEVER

BEEN IN MY LIFETIME, SINCE WE

GOT RID OF THE JIM CROW BURDENS

ON VOTING, THE DETERMINED EFFORT

TO LIMIT THE FRANCHISE THAT

WE SEE TODAY.

Rocca: THOSE CAUGHT

IN THE CROSSFIRE?

MILLIONS OF AMERICAN VOTERS

JUST LIKE YOU AND ME.

AND NO, YOUR FLAT FEET ARE NOT

GONNA KEEP YOU OUT OF THIS ONE.

I'M MO ROCCA.

MY JOURNEY BEGAN FOUR YEARS

AGO, WHEN I HEADED TO THE FRONT

LINES OF THIS EPIC

AND ONGOING BATTLE.

I WANTED TO SEE FOR MYSELF HOW

VOTING WORKS IN AMERICA.

...ROCCA THE VOTE!

ROCCA THE VOTE!

...WHAT I FOUND WAS

SOMETIMES SHOCKING...

IT'S JUST A SIMPLE LITTLE

THING-- THEY DON'T WANT TO PUT

THEM BALLOTS THROUGH THAT

MACHINE ON ELECTION DAY.

SOMETIMES ENCOURAGING...

WE WANT THE BALLOTS TO TIP

TO OUR SIDE, OBVIOUSLY,

AS REPUBLICANS... BUT YOU HAVE

TO HAVE DEMOCRATS, TOO.

THEY'RE GONNA BE THERE.

SO I ROOT FOR THE GOOD ONES.

AND ALWAYS SURPRISING.

Man: REDNECKS FOR OBAMA!

Man 2: HELL YEAH, ABSOLUTELY!

THIS IS MY WAR DIARY.

[BRASS BAND PLAYS

"AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL"...]

O.K., SO WHO GETS TO VOTE

IN AMERICA?

WELL, YOU'RE ALLOWED TO VOTE

IF YOU'RE BORN HERE.

SIMPLE ENOUGH.

TELL ME WHAT THE TROUBLE IS.

I'M GOING TO HAVE A BABY.

Man: I HEREBY DECLARE

ON OATH...

All: I HEREBY DECLARE

ON OATH...

YOU ALSO GET TO VOTE

IF YOU BECOME A CITIZEN.

SO FAR, SO GOOD.

BUT HISTORY IS CHOCK-FULL

OF STORIES ABOUT EXCLUDED

GROUPS FIGHTING AND DYING TO

GET THE RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES

DUE AMERICAN CITIZENS.

WHICH BEGS THE QUESTION...

...IS VOTING A RIGHT

OR A PRIVILEGE?

A RIGHT.

IS VOTING A RIGHT

OR A PRIVILEGE?

I THINK IT'S, UH... BOTH.

YOU HAVE TO CHOOSE.

I HAVE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN

A RIGHT AND A PRIVILEGE?

YEAH, THAT'S THE WAY THE GAME

IS PLAYED.

OH, I THINK IT'S A RIGHT.

WHAT DOES YOUR FRIEND THINK?

TYLER, DO YOU THINK VOTING

IS A RIGHT OR A PRIVILEGE?

HE THINKS IT'S A RIGHT, TOO.

VOTING IS A PRIVILEGE...

UM... WHICH IS WHAT I TELL

MY STUDENTS.

I THINK IF YOU'RE A CITIZEN,

THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE THE RIGHT

TO VOTE.

ALL RIGHT, THERE SEEMS TO BE

SOME CONFUSION HERE.

SO WHO BETTER TO SORT THIS OUT

FOR ME THAN SOME OF OUR

COUNTRY'S NEWLY MINTED

CITIZENS?

I MEAN, THEY JUST TOOK A TEST

ON THIS STUFF.

LUCKILY WE HAPPENED UPON A

GIANT COPY OF THE CONSTITUTION

AND WENT TO WORK.

...YOU'RE UP IN ARTICLE 1,

IS THERE ANYTHING THERE?

Woman: NOTHING.

THIS IS THE WRONG COPY, I THINK.

NO, THIS IS THE CONSTITUTION.

THIS IS THE CONSTITUTION...

I THINK IT IS THAT.

YEAH... NO, SAM, I THINK

YOU'RE OVER IN CONGRESS

RIGHT HERE.

ANY VOTING THERE?

I DON'T FIND ANYTHING.

Woman: THERE'S A LOT OF

STUFF IN THERE BUT NOTHING

ABOUT VOTING.

I HAVEN'T SEEN IT...

I HAVEN'T SEEN ANYTHING.

YEAH, I COULDN'T FIND

ANYTHING.

...BUT EVEN USING A HIGH-TECH

MAGNIFYING DEVICE,

WE WERE COMING UP EMPTY.

I DECIDED I NEEDED HELP

FROM AN EXPERT.

...I'VE BEEN LOOKING ALL OVER

THE CONSTITUTION FOR THE RIGHT

TO VOTE AND I CAN'T FIND IT.

I'M NOT SURPRISED.

THERE IS NO RIGHT TO VOTE

IN THE CONSTITUTION.

YOU'RE NOT KIDDING ME?

NO, I'M NOT KIDDING YOU.

UM... THE CONSTITUTION AT THE

NATION'S BIRTH MADE NO MENTION

OF VOTING RIGHTS WHATSOEVER.

DID THEY JUST FORGET TO?

NO, THEY DIDN'T FORGET TO.

THEY WERE UNSURE, IN FACT,

WHETHER VOTING WAS A RIGHT

OR A PRIVILEGE.

AND IF IT WAS A RIGHT,

THEY WEREN'T SURE WHO THE RIGHT

ACTUALLY BELONGED TO.

THIS CONSTITUTIONAL SILENCE

ON THE RIGHT TO VOTE PUTS THE

U.S. IN THE COMPANY OF NATIONS

LIKE LIBYA, IRAN AND INDONESIA.

IN TERMS OF THE CONSTITUTION,

WHAT WE HAVE IS A KIND OF RAGTAG

SERIES OF AD-HOC CONSTITUTIONAL

AMENDMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN ADDED

THROUGH POPULAR STRUGGLE TO SAY

YOU CAN'T DISCRIMINATE

ON THE BASIS OF RACE--

THE 15th AMENDMENT--

YOU CAN'T DISCRIMINATE

ON THE BASIS OF SEX--

THE 19th AMENDMENT--

PEOPLE IN THE SEAT OF GOVERNMENT

HAVE THE RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE

IN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS--

THE 23rd.