Congress needs to toughen the laws protecting elections and make clear that anyone interfering with democracy will pay a stiff price.

Supporters of tough voter ID laws are not afraid of vote fraud - they are afraid of democracy.

It is hard to imagine an area in which Congress has more express constitutional authority to act than in protecting the right of minorities to vote.

When the gun lobby fights gun-control legislation, its logic is clear: it does not like laws that prevent people from owning or using guns.

It is not hard to see why the FBI wants wiretapping backdoors. It would certainly make its job easier. But rejiggering the Internet so government can conveniently monitor everything we say and do online is too high a price to pay for making law enforcement more efficient.

As long as there have been elections, there have been attempts to keep eligible people from voting.