I seriously feel voter fraud should be addressed in this country.

I equally seriously feel it’s a state issue, and not something the federal government needs to be reaching into.

And with that said, President Trump’s Election Integrity Commission had its first meeting today, with Trump and Vice President Pence in attendance.

I’m not sure what they talked about, since almost every state in the union has balked at the idea of giving such broad voter information over to the federal government, citing government overreach and privacy issues in their dissent.

Trump called the work of this commission, originally formed to prove his claim that if not for illegal voters, he would have won the popular vote, as well as the Electoral College vote, their “sacred duty.”

“Every time voter fraud occurs, it cancels out the vote of a lawful citizen and undermines democracy,” he said at the meeting in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, next to the White House. “Can’t let that happen. Any form of illegal or fraudulent voting, whether by noncitizens or the deceased, and any form of voter suppression or intimidation must be stopped.”

Trump said the country has “no choice” but to investigate the election process.

“We have no choice. We want to make America great again,” he said.

“We have to protect the integrity of the vote and our voters. This is not a Democrat or a Republican issue. It’s an American issue. It’s about the concern of so many Americans that improper voting has taken place and [is] cancelling out the votes of lawful American citizens.”

I’m in North Carolina. The shenanigans from Democrats in this state reach heights of breathtaking corruption, and I have no doubt they were at play in the 2016 election, as outside sources helped one of the most inept, ridiculous attorney generals this fair state has ever had, wrest control of the governorship from one of the most successful and upright governors we’ve ever had.

That activist judges in the 4^th Circuit Court of Appeals rushed to strike down very commonsense voter ID laws shortly before the election made it easier for those who feel the ends justify the means to do what they do.

It was, however, Republican-led election boards in the state that gave the assist in the end, by refusing to do audits or to hear multiple reports of fraudulent activity at the polls.

If Trump and this commission were truly serious about securing the integrity of our elections, they would begin by dealing with the voter ID issue.

That’s not what they’re doing, however.

Trump specifically called out states that have refused to send the information during his brief remarks on Wednesday.

“If any state does not want to share this information, one has to wonder, what they are worried about?” he asked.

“There’s something, there always is.”

And there may be. I believe that voter fraud happens. I absolutely believe it. I reiterate, however, that this is a state issue.

The commission has faced numerous lawsuits, already, against opponents like the ACLU, who feel it violates federal law. The commission, on the other hand, claims there is no violation of federal law, because they’re not a federal agency.

Trump’s presence at the meeting is likely to further anger opponents who claim the commission has violated the Federal Advisory Committee Act.

The 1972 law requires the membership of the advisory committee to be fairly balanced in terms of the points of view represented, the suit says, and ensures that “appropriate provisions” be made “to assure that the advice and recommendations of the advisory committee will not be inappropriately influenced by the appointing authority or by any special interest, but will instead be the result of the advisory committee’s independent judgment.”

This commission is a bad idea and a bad use of federal funds.

Keep it at the state level, then collect the findings in a federal report. Start, however, with addressing voter ID and failings with the absentee system, that make fraud easier to commit.