Open Thread - DOJ Pledge

The Justice Department pledged Monday to send election monitors around the country to help ensure access to the polls in November, even while acknowledging its limited power to enforce election laws. Civil rights groups fear that an unprecedented minority voter turnout due to Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama might be countered by efforts to intimidate or otherwise block people who seek to cast their ballots. Attorney General Michael Mukasey and other Justice officials met about 35 representatives from voter access watchdogs, hoping to assure them that having a smooth Nov. 4 election is a priority. "The Justice Department has a limited but extremely important role to play in ensuring elections are fair and just," acting Assistant Attorney General Grace Chung Becker told reporters after the closed-door meeting.