Looking for military cover after U.S. special forces killed Osama bin Laden, Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson claimed Monday that a Republican election-reform package would make it harder for service personnel to vote.
Nelson, who is running for re-election in 2012, said that the Florida House bill would "disenfranchise" people like the Navy Seals and other military and intelligence personnel who spearheaded the raid on bin Ladens compound in Pakistan.
Dont make it harder to vote, the senator said. Dont make it harder to register to vote. And dont make it harder to count your vote.
Republicans immediately returned fire, calling Nelson's charge a "political stunt" that played fast and loose with the facts.
"It is clear that Senator Nelson is ill-informed about the specifics of the legislation," said Katie Betta, a spokeswoman for House Speaker Dean Cannon.
The two-term senator, speaking at a news conference hosted by the House Democratic Caucus, contended that the House bill, scheduled to be considered by the Senate this week, takes aim at college students and military personnel who are most likely to move.
Nelson said the measure, among other things, alters existing election law that allows voters to change their addresses and names at the polls. Under the revised law, such voters would have to cast a provisional ballot, which requires future confirmation of residency.
Betta responded: "Senator Nelson takes a situation that would have already resulted in a discrepancy -- and one for which a remedy already exists -- and implies that our bill would adversely impact the situation and result in the service member not being able to cast a vote.
"In reality -- under FS 101.68 (2), which has been on the books for years having a voter registration card that says 'William Jones' and signing the absentee ballot 'SGT Bill Jones' already results in a discrepancy. That is why federal law requires overseas military absentees to be sent a 45-day out, so that the supervisors [of elections] have enough time to seek a resolution for these types of discrepancies to ensure that the service members ballot is counted.
"Furthermore, our bill goes one step further. When 'SGT Jones' requested his absentee ballot, he would have received a reminder to update his signature. He would have then received a confirmation from the supervisor confirming the update."
Betta said that the House bill was amended "so that a voter within the same county can do a same-day change of address and still cast a regular ballot.
"Regardless, if a person is casting a legitimate provisional ballot, it will be counted," she said.
Senate President Mike Haridopolos, Nelson's first announced challenger in the 2012 race, said the senator "should be ashamed of himself."
"Today I stood on the Senate floor and congratulated President Obama for a job well done by bringing justice to the victims of the 9/11 terror attacks.
"Then a few hours later, Senator Bill Nelson stoops to a new low and plays political games by comparing pending legislation to a terrorist organization that has killed thousands of people. That is unbecoming of a United States senator and a leader in our state. That kind of fear-mongering is irresponsible."
Nelson's office did not respond to Sunshine State News' request for a response. And Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., declined to comment.
Meantime, Republican leaders in Tallahassee continued to berate Nelson throughout the day Monday.
Florida House Majority Leader Carlos Lopez-Cantera said Nelson's allegations were "motivated solely by his re-election campaign at the expense of our armed forces.
"His disgraceful suggestion that the Florida Legislature would attempt to diminish the voting rights of American heroes is offensive and untruthful, and I demand that Senator Nelson immediately apologize for politicizing what should be a moment of unity for our nation."
In a closing shot, Lopez-Cantera, R-Miami, added:
As a U.S. senator, he should be focused on tackling our failed federal immigration policy, preserving the Space Coast economy, and pushing back against an administration that is threatening to raise taxes on job creators when Florida is experiencing record high unemployment.
Dave Bitner, chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, issued this statement late Monday:
Senator Bill Nelson tried to interject himself into the Florida legislative process today by pulling a desperate and embarrassing stunt typical of the career politician.
"Unable to communicate a clear argument against the elections bill, Nelson instead tried to suggest that the bill negatively affected the rights of our military members.
His statement is not only false, but also disrespectful to all of the military men and women who serve, especially on such an important day."
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Contact Kenric Ward at kward@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 801-5341.
