Many Democrat politicians talk a good game about democracy. They bill themselves as the defenders of the little guy. They have all the soundbites on empowerment down pat.

But beyond arguing (the obvious) that every vote should count — well, especially that every vote no matter how spoiled or irreconcilable ought to be counted for them — these Democrats are downright undemocratic. Seems, what with all their support for the little guy, they'll go to almost any length to block average citizens from voting on important issues.

Meet Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan. Most will recognize her name; she's the daughter of Missouri's late governor and posthumously elected U.S. Senator, Mel Carnahan. She's also the "Show Me" state's highest election official. Robin Carnahan doesn't merely administer elections. She's hell-bent on preventing them. Her short track record in public office demonstrates the dangers of partisan politicians holding offices on which mere little guys must depend for an honest democratic government.

Oh, sure, she recently came up with more than a dozen reasons for counting votes on spoiled ballots in Rolla, Missouri — her decision yielding a one-vote victory for a Democrat. But when it comes to allowing the people of Rolla or St. Louis or Kansas City to vote on issues — such as a citizen initiative signed by nearly 220,000 Missourians entitled "Protect Our Homes" — her response could be summed up in one word of Brooklynese: "Fugetaboudit!"

Carnahan and the official state government treatment of this citizen petition — a measure to stop eminent domain abuse and protect private property against a government grown rapacious — only highlights just how out of control government has become.

It is a textbook example of how America is not supposed to function.

First, less than a month before this year's set deadline for turning in signatures on citizen initiatives, the Secretary of State arbitrarily changed the deadline, moving it up two days.

Why?

As had always been done in the past, Carnahan's office originally set the deadline on May 9, because it otherwise fell on a Sunday, May 7, when the Secretary of State's office is closed. Since the following day, Monday, May 8, was a state holiday, Truman's birthday, the deadline fell back one more day to the 9th of May.

But this February, citizens submitted and began petitioning on initiatives that Carnahan and the government establishment in Jefferson City didn't much like. One was the Protect Our Homes measure, which would protect private property from abusive regulatory takings and from the now well-documented eminent domain takings. The other measure, Stop OverSpending, limited spending increases by folks like Carnahan. (What? Can't steal homes or spend tax money like drunken sailors?) So, with only weeks left before the long publicized deadline, Carnahan decided to reverse course and open on Sunday.

Just as a disservice to the public.

Jerking around the deadline was arbitrary and underhanded, but apparently legal. And also unsuccessful. Missourians in Charge, the group spearheading the effort, managed to turn in nearly 220,000 voter signatures to Secretary of State Carnahan on time, even with the shorter deadline.

So, on May 7, presented with nearly 220,000 signatures on petitions by the grassroots Missourians in Charge to stop government stealing of homes, churches and small businesses, what was Carnahan to do?

That's easy: refuse to count them.

Secretary of State Carnahan came up with two reasons for refusing to do her job. The first concerns the ballot title and fiscal impact note given by the State of Missouri to each initiative.

There is a process in Missouri whereby the Secretary of State certifies a ballot title, including a fiscal note, working with the auditor and attorney general. In the case of the Protect Our Homes measure, Carnahan's office prepared such a title and Missourians in Charge began gathering signatures on petitions.

Soon, the state's Municipal League filed suit against the title and fiscal note prepared by their friends in Ms. Carnahan's office. A judge ordered the fiscal note prepared by the state to be re-worked. Just 48 hours before the deadline for turning in signatures, Patrick Tuohey, head of Missourian in Charge, was informed by the Secretary of State of the new fiscal impact note. Continued...