January 6. Donald Trump. Abortion and IVF. Everyone knows what President Biden and Democrats will be using as election wedge issues.
But apparently, Biden and the Pennsylvania Democrats aren’t sure that it will be enough to win.
Because Democrats from Washington to Harrisburg, and from Montgomery County to Philadelphia, have all announced plans in recent days to use taxpayer-funded campaigning and messaging to help their party win this fall.
At the White House on February 27, Vice President Harris convened a meeting of officials of federal social services agencies, along with a shopping list of left-wing organizations and Democratic Party allies – including a Democratic county commissioner from Montgomery County (more on him to follow). All were asked to help register voters, “promote voter participation for students,” and get them out to the polls.
At the meeting, Harris announced that federal “work study” dollar – paid for by taxpayers –would be used to pay college students to help at the polls.
That same day, back in Philadelphia – where Biden carried 81.4% of the vote in 2020 –Councilman Isiah Thomas announced an initiative to register “young Black men” through a collaboration between the Philadelphia City Council and the City Commissioners office. As the Philadelphia Inquirer reported: “The effort (to register young Black men) is non-partisan, though it’s led primarily by Democrats.”
So that’s two city agencies putting their officials to work on voter registration and turnout, especially among young black men – who supported Biden with 92% of their votes – in a city that Biden carried overwhelmingly.
On February 28, fresh from his meeting at the White House the day before, Montgomery County Commissioner Neil Makhija announced that he has a plan to boost mail-in votes.
Not satisfied that Biden beat Trump in Montgomery County by a 2–1 margin, or that Biden beat Trump in mail-in voting by 5 to 1, he wants to use taxpayer money to “drive” those totals higher.
When a voter submits a ballot but fails to sign or date the outside envelope, it’s considered flawed. The voter is allowed to fix it, however; legally, this is known as “curing.” Typically, the voter receives an email and/or letter notifying him that he can go to the courthouse and legally fix the ballot.
Sometimes voters don’t respond, however, so the ballot remains flawed. And, sometimes – though not always – the ballot is not counted.
But in 2024, “Democracy is on the ballot,” as the Democrats keep telling us. So, Commissioner Makhija has a plan. Montgomery County will send paid staff – in a Democratic-controlled county to drive to voters’ residences and personally help voters fix their ballots.
Taxpayer-funded staff (who will be overwhelmingly, if not exclusively, registered Democrats) will take the ballot that has already been submitted to the courthouse, remove it from the courthouse, and drive it to a voter’s home, where – with luck – the actual voter will fix the ballot himself. Then the taxpayer-funded staffer will drive it back to the Democrat-controlled courthouse.
At best, this is another publicly funded get-out-the-vote program. Recall that Biden received five mail-in votes for every one Trump ballot. At worst, the already multi-person chain of custody grows, as yet another person touches the ballot and takes it out of the courthouse, and then, on the honor system, makes sure that the actual voter fixes it—all to satisfy the Democratic county commissioner, who was invited to a strategy meeting at the White House with the vice president, who is running for reelection.
Meanwhile, in Harrisburg, seeing what was happening at the White House, City Hall, and in Montco, Gov. Josh Shapiro seemed to say: “Hold my beer.”
Because, after all, “Democracy is on the ballot.” So, it’s essential that Democrats not only scare voters with fears of democracy falling but also that the governor use his bully pulpit and taxpayers’ dollars to reinforce this key message – in this case, by announcing a state-federal-county “task force” of police, investigators, agents, cabinet officials, and more.
“We take our responsibility as stewards of democracy seriously,” Shapiro proclaimed as he created the Election Threats Task Force.
Just think of it. All these safety officers, intelligence officials, and cabinet and sub-cabinet officials coming together – not to secure the border, not to address violent crime in Philadelphia or Pittsburgh or Norristown, but to make sure that the “bad guys” (aka Trump voters) don’t do something to disrupt or destroy “Democracy.”
Shapiro made his announcement on February 29. Commissioner Makhija made his on the 28th, and Councilman Thomas his on the 27th – the same day as the all hands-on-deck meetings at the White House chaired by Vice President Harris.
With the White House and Congress on the line, Democrats clearly don’t want to take any chances. Heaven forbid voters think that this election is about inflation, higher grocery bills, gas prices and interest rates, shrinking savings accounts, rising credit-card debt, violent crime in our cities (and suburbs), an open border, and America growing weaker around the world.
They’re pulling out all the stops – including your taxpayer dollars. Pay college students; register “young black men;” drive to voters’ homes to fix their ballots; and do all you can to frighten suburban swing voters.
Maybe Democrats are right. Maybe Democracy really is on the ballot. Just not in the way they think.
