Rep. Jerry Nadler has been in Congress so long he seems to have forgotten he once disapproved of mail-in ballots because of their susceptibility to fraud.
While the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee has recently been criticizing President Trump's concern over mail-in ballots, saying he's only worried that Americans "won't vote" for him, a video from a 2004 hearing has resurfaced that shows the New York Democrat expressing concern over this type of voting.
"As a very experienced practical politician from New York, [I] feel constrained to observe that in my experience in New York, paper ballots are extremely susceptible to fraud. And at least with the old clunking voting machines that we have in New York, the deliberate fraud is way down compared to paper," he said in response to a woman who argued in favor of abandoning voting machines, pointing to a Massachusetts Institute of Technology study that found hand-counted ballots were among the "most reliable" methods of voting.
"When the machines break down, they vote on paper and we've had real problems. So that's a — that is — there's got to be a way — there's got to be a way — I'm simply observing that as a problem," Nadler continued. "There's got to be a way of getting the best of our methodologies. ... I want paper trail. I want paper somewhere. But pure paper with no machines, I can show you — I can show you experience which would make your head spin."
VIDEO - Jerry Nadler in 2004: ‘Paper Ballots Are Extremely Susceptible to Fraud ... I Can Show You Experience Which Would Make Your Head Spin’ https://t.co/KthcGYYV4y
— Grabien (@GrabienMedia) May 27, 2020
When Eric Trump tweeted out the video, Nadler defended his position, saying, "mail-in or absentee ballots are a paper trail used by, among others, our men and women in uniform."
Eric! So good to hear from you, I had forgotten all about you but hope you are doing okay.
— (((Rep. Nadler))) (@RepJerryNadler) May 27, 2020
Love the video of me talking about the need for a paper trail to ensure voting integrity. Mail-in or absentee ballots are a paper trail used by, among others, our men and women in uniform. https://t.co/yfM9QkkNJm
