Desperate Democrats Calling for Lower Voting Age

By Douglas V. Gibbs

With the threat of Conservatism encouraging Republican voters to come in droves to the voting booth, the Democrats are getting desperate. Their demonization of candidates like Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum is not only not working, but these candidates are meeting the attacks by the liberal left head on with a conservative message that includes the inclusion into their plans of all Americans.

In the hope to drum up more votes, Minnesota U.S. Representative Keith Ellison, also the only Muslim in Congress, said last week that the voter age should be lowered to 16.

Ellison argues that if 16 year olds can hold jobs and drive they should be able to vote. But we must consider whether or not at that age these voters are willing to be fully informed, and if they are willing to vote based on careful consideration of the issues and candidates.

16 year olds are not mature enough in the sense of being informed about politics and the various issues this nation faces, and are more likely to chase after cults of personality, which is exactly why democrats are pursuing this idea. Frankly, I am not even sure it was a good idea to drop the voting age to 18 with the 26th Amendment.

The Founding Fathers expected the voters to be as informed as possible, and that is part of the reason that only property owners were allowed to vote in the beginning. Property owners had a stake in who was elected because of their position in society. Those who did not have "skin in the game" as Obama would call it did not vote for any reason other than what goodies politicians could promise them, or based on a Cult of Personality. In reality, one of our biggest problems in this nation is that voters don't spend the time to be informed as it is, and yet the democrats want to add younger voters who are even less likely to ensure they are informed? Why would the democrats do this? The liberal democrats want this because they know that a good liar with a big smile, and politicians that promise more goodies from the treasury, have a better chance to win the vote of the youngsters, making the deceptive style of campaigning by democrats just what the doctor ordered for the younger voter.

In short, it is a very bad idea.

Let's let people season a little before giving them the extremely important duty of voting.

-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary

Dem. Rep. Ellison: Let 16-Year-Olds Vote - The Hill