Allowing non-Citizens to vote in Maryland? The Privilege of Voting should not be diminished.

The Mayor of New Haven, Maryland has a very unique idea: give the right to vote in municipal elections to non-citizens. John DeStefano (D) has asked the state to allow this to happen. The idea is to allow Permanent Residents, who are not Citizens to vote. This includes the undocumented. He is not alone. Maryland already allows for 6 other cities to do this. His reasoning is that since they pay taxes, they should have a say in budgets and elections on the municipal, or city level.

This idea is forgetting something very critical. Voting is more than a right, it is a privilege. In order to have a more robust political atmosphere in our country, we should provide more instruction on our political culture prior to people voting. For example, people need to learn about our Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, the Separation of Powers, etc. I had to pass a mandatory test on the Constitution in order to go to High School, and I was born here.

Do the indocumented pay taxes? Sales taxes, yes but not Federal taxes. I understand  that many are here due to desperate economic conditions back home, but the privilege of voting should only come after they become American Citizens. It's not easy. Those who do it the proper way have to fill out a lot of paperwork and have to wait. Then, after they are allowed in, have to take classes regarding our Republic and how our rights work. Not to mention having to pay fees for all this as well. This takes time, but we end up with American Citizens that understand our system and appreciate our political values.

The privilege of voting is not something to be given away simply due to political whims. Handing out this right to anyone who shows up on Election Day will not make our Republic stronger. It simply diminishes this very important privilege. John DeStefano and all other politicians who think like him should be resisted and defeated.....+