Welcome back to the show.
Ever since losing the popular vote,
President Trump has had his Underoos
in a wad about 3 million people who voted illegally.
They don't exist.
What does exist is 6 million people whose right to vote
has been taken away.
To learn about them, I went to Florida, where retirees
and democracy go to die.
Florida, the land of sunshine.
And amazing criminals.
But all that gun smuggling comes at a cost.
Florida leads the nation in denying the right
to vote to one specific group--
felons.
10% of all Floridians, and nearly one quarter
of its African American population,
denied the right to vote.
Right now in Florida, this policy impacts
over 1.68 million people.
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): And Desmond Meade
is one of those people.
A recovered drug addict released from prison in 2004,
Desmond has since put himself through college and law school.
Show-off.
But unfortunately, he lives in one of the only states
where you're banned from voting for the rest
of your life, which in Florida could be up to 15 more years.
It doesn't matter if it's a first degree or a third degree.
You can lose your rights for life
over something as simple as driving
with a suspended license.
Come on, Florida.
Do you really want to be the Florida of everything?
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): In Florida, felonies
can be things like buying weed, tampering with an odometer,
or disturbing a lobster trap.
So basically, spring break.
And once you lose your rights, it's nearly impossible
to get them back because after you finish your sentence
in probation, there's a five to seven
year waiting period before you can even apply,
which is followed by a nine year backlog.
And then you have to get your ass all the way to Tallahassee
for a hearing at the clemency board,
where the governor asks--
Give me a pitch. Give me the pitch.
What's your pitch that we should do this?
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): Oh, it's like "Shark
Tank" for your civil rights.
There's head shark Governor Rick Voldemort and his three
Republican friends.
And they give former felons only one shot.
I'm not a bad guy.
I'm a good guy.
And I am very sorry.
Clemencies is there's no standard.
We can do whatever we want.
So I'm going to deny restoration of civil rights.
I congratulate you on what you've-- how
you've turned your life around.
It's all denied.
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): Tough call.
But at least it was arbitrary.
The board rejects over 90% of people who appeal,
which makes you wonder.
Am I ever allowed as a citizen here?
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): For that answer,
I asked Roger Clegg, a former member of the Justice
Department and the leading voice on why
ex-felons should not have their civil rights restored.
People who commit serious crimes
against their fellow citizens are not qualified to vote.
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): Right.
Serious crimes.
If you're not willing to follow the law,
then you can't claim a right to make the law for everyone else.
But you can't ever vote for crime.
Oh, sure you can.
What?
Lots of states have referenda and ballot
initiatives and things like that where
you actually are making the law
Come on, Roger.
It's not like felons are going to be organized enough to get
a referendum on the ballot.
I'm working to get a referendum on the ballot.
That referendum would restore the ability
to vote of former felons after they have completely served
all portions of their sentence.
Is it like a long con?
Like first you ask to be treated like a citizen,
then you legalize the purge.
No.
Not the purge.
The quicker you help a person reintegrate
back into their community, the least likely
they are to re-offend.
You know, you give them a stake in the community,
it's better for everyone.
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): Sounds like a win-win.
But these Republicans are still intent on denying
a voice to over a million and a half people in a swing state.
Oh God, they think this is about politics, don't they?
A lot of Democrats are pushing for this
just because they think it will help them,
you know, win elections.
Had felons been allowed to vote, Al Gore
would have won the presidential election because he
would have carried Florida. - Interesting.
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): Oh, they're
worried Democrats will take all the ex-felons for themselves.
This might surprise you, but not all felons are Democrats.
There are conservatives who have committed crimes as well.
Really?
Republicans want this too? - We do.
Oh God.
I'm Neil Volz.
I'm a former felon from Florida, I'm a Republican,
and a conservative.
Have you been sitting there the whole time?
I've been here the whole time.
I'm so biased I can't even see Republicans anymore.
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): Neil was convicted
of corruption 10 years ago as part of the Jack
Abramoff lobbying scandal.
Now he's working with Desmond.
So did you two cook up this idea
together while you were in prison?
No, I didn't serve any time in prison.
Right.
White felony, doesn't seem to go to prison.
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): It's not
easy to make people care about felons,
but Desmond and Neil are willing to talk
to anyone, including a big boy with his very own show.
Because this affects my life too.
I'm going to have to live under the president that you choose.
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): Can't imagine
what that would be like.
And these two have to reach a lot of Floridians
if they plan to make the 2018 ballot.
You're only two people.
How are you going to get 700,000 people to sign this?
We're very confident because of the grassroots nature
of what we're doing.
We meet people at the coffee shop,
we meet them at the church, we meet them at their businesses.
You're partners driving around Florida,
trying to put some good back into this crazy world.
- That's right. - That's about right.
I feel like we could sex it up a bit.
[GASP] Everything's more fun in a blazer, right?
Oh no.
Roll the titles!
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): Desmond and Neil
are on a mission.
They're hitting the streets to clean up Florida's dark past
and make a better, sexier, votier tomorrow.
But they can't do it without your help.
Because--
We're not doing this.
Oh, no.
SAMANTHA BEE (VOICEOVER): Coming to a ballot near you.
You can download and sign Desmond and Neil's referendum
by going to miamirights.com.
And if you aren't a Florida voter,
I bet you know someone who is, and she's been
dying to get a card from you.
We'll be right back.
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