WASHINGTON STATE ELECTION

Just watched the judge's decision on video, and Gregoire's the official governor. After about 1 minute, I suspected that the judge would uphold the certification. My first thought was, "Boy, was that judge on the take".

That's probably not fair; it was, in fact, an extremely conservative ruling on the law. Washington law on elections, you could drive a truck thru. It seems to accept an extremely loose standard for a legal vote.

Now, what should the Republicans do?

Mobilize. They need to meet with the RNC, and strategize on ways to make sure that this NEVER happens again. They need to get the legislature to pass tighter controls on local boards of election, they need to set a standard that NO vote that falls out of the chain of custody can be voted. They need to set up a system of bi-partisan observation at every step of the process, from registration to precinct outposts. It should be clear that everything has to be videotaped, other than the actual voting.

It would be a pity to have to take such draconian measures, but when your adversary is dedicated to winning, no matter what, you have to work harder to keep it legal.

It goes without saying that the first step is a massive effort at voter registration. But that alone won't do the trick. At the national level, the Congress should enact a National Voting Rights Act that compels people to have valid photo ID, in hand, when they vote. No ID, no vote.