Ted Yoho Misses the Jim Crow Era

Via Right Wing Watch: Rep. Ted Yoho wants to bring back the the voting restriction of only property owners being allowed to vote.

“I’ve had some radical ideas about voting and it’s probably not a good time to tell them, but you used to have to be a property owner to vote,” he said to applause.

In 1790, only white male property owners were allowed to vote. So if you are a woman or a minority you are shit out of luck if Ted Yoho ever becomes President. Judging by the fact that Yoho is speaking to a nearly empty church, I doubt we have to worry about Yoho becoming President anytime soon.

I wonder if the tax cut loving Yoho would support Florida bringing back the poll tax. USF political science Darryl Paulson outlines the laws made by whites in the 19th century to deny blacks the right to vote.

By 1876, Reconstruction was over, and Florida politicians would adopt many provisions to eliminate black voting. The Sunshine State would "legally" eliminate black votes without violating the 19th Amendment. Between laws passed by the Legislature and the adoption of the 1885 Constitution, almost every black vote was eliminated.

Florida, like every one of the former Confederate states, adopted a white primary, grandfather clause, poll tax, literacy test, long residency requirements and other obstacles to black voters. It was a virtual fail-safe system. If one barrier failed, there would always be another to stop them from voting.

Yoho's voting policies are about discrimination. Yoho is a self-professed birther.

In audio recorded by an audience member and posted on YouTube, Yoho can be heard telling the crowd that the issue of President Obama’s birth certificate was a “distraction” from topics like the national debt, he said he was hopeful that a birther investigation could bring down the whole government: “They said if it is true, it’s illegal, he shouldn’t be there and we can get rid of everything he’s done, and I said I agree with that.”

Still doubt Yoho holds racist views? Yoho told a black constituent that he isn't sure if the Civil Rights Act is constitutional.

FLOURNOY: Do you think that any part of the Civil Rights Act of 1965 [sic], do you think any part of that is constitutional? And then if you’d discuss why. [...]

YOHO: This country grew through a lot of growing pain. We’re going through it again. As we grow as a country and prosper, we’re going to go through it again in the future. That’s why I’m so thankful for the Constitution because it allows us to do that. Is it constitutional, the Civil Rights Act? I wish I could answer that 100 percent. I know a lot of things that were passed are not constitutional, but I know it’s the law of the land.

Keep this in mind when Yoho asks why black voters aren't Republicans.

Ted Yoho Needs to Take an Economics Course

Sen. Tom Coburn went on CBS to claim that the United States will be able to pay its bills if the debt ceiling is not raised. The reality is the Treasury Department will be broke because it can no longer borrow money to pay its bills. Rep. Ted Yoho doesn't want to raise the debt ceiling. Ever. In fact, Yoho claims not raising the debt ceiling would be great.

“I think we need to have that moment where we realize [we’re] going broke,” Yoho said. If the debt ceiling isn’t raised, that will sure as heck be a moment. “I think, personally, it would bring stability to the world markets,” since they would be assured that the United States had moved decisively to curb its debt.

If the Treasury Department runs out of money there will be a credit freeze. The last time there was a major credit freeze was in 2008 after Lehman Brothers went under. The result was the biggest financial crash since the Great Depression. It should be required that candidates take an economics course before they run for Congress.

Ted Yoho Wants the United States to Default

Florida Congressman Ted Yoho told people at a town hall meeting that credit agencies would love it if the federal government didn't raise the debt ceiling and defaulted.

I think the creditors that we owe money to around theworld would say, "you know what, they're getting their house in order." And I think our credit rating would do better, if we did that thanface the mass [sic] program we've beenup to ... There are severalof us that we'renot raising the debt ceiling; don't ask us. We don't have a money problem, we have a spending problem.

Enron and World Com were downgraded when it became apparent that these companies couldn't pay their bills. Foreign governments and banks are not going to want the United States to default and announce to the world that they aren't going to pay their debts. What Yoho is proposing is turning the United States into Greece or a banana republic. You can kiss the days of the United States being a world economic power goodbye.

Ted Yoho Feels Racially Oppressed Because of the Tanning Tan

Republicans love to talk about how the rest of America is racist against white people. If you don't believe me then listen to Florida Republican congressman Ted Yoho.

Yoho explains: “I had a little fun with [John] Boehner and told him about the sun tanning tax. He goes, ‘I didn’t know it was in there,’ and I said, ‘Yes, it’s a ten percent tax.’ He goes, ‘Well, that’s not that big of a deal.’ I said, ‘It’s a racist tax.’ He goes, ‘You know what, it is.’ I had an Indian doctor in our office the other day, very dark skin, with two non-dark skin people, and I asked this to him, I said, ‘Have you ever been to a tanning booth?’ and he goes, ‘No, no need.’ So therefore it’s a racist tax and I thought I might need to get to a sun tanning booth so I can come out and say I’ve been disenfranchised because I got taxed because of the color of my skin. As crazy as that sounds, that’s what the left does right. By God, if it works for them, it’ll work for us [inaudible].”

Yoho is a freshman tea party candidate and an Obama birther. It is fascinating how the people that scream racism are the biggest racists.

Florida Republicans Voting Against the Violence Against Women Act

This should be used as a helpful reminder to voters. I don't want congressional members of the Florida delegation to duck voting against the Violence Against Women Act. Here is a list of Florida elective officials voting nay on VAWA.

House of Representative

Gus Bilirakis, Ron DeSantis, John Mica, Jeff Miller, Bill Posey, Trey Radel, Tom Rooney, Dennis Ross, Steve Southerland, Ted Yoho

Senate

Marco Rubio

Remember this next time you head into the voting booth.