Our cartoon shows a bureaucrat installing stairs across an accessible ramp. The voters are perfectly capable of making a choice. The official is busy making that choice harder to exercise. He has a clipboard, so the obstruction looks extremely professional.
Key takeaways
- OMB proposes restricting federal-award spending on voter-registration work.
- The proposal is distinct from an enacted rule.
- The cartoon targets the official building barriers, not disabled voters.
The proposed restriction is on the page.
OMB’s proposed federal-assistance regulation would prohibit funding voter-registration campaigns, drives, and related activities under federal awards. OMB frames the revisions as keeping award funds aligned with authorized program purposes.
ProPublica’s reporting describes disability advocates’ concerns about losing registration assistance. Read that reporting for the people and organizations involved.
The voter is not the obstacle.
There is a particular bureaucratic cruelty in calling assistance an unnecessary extra when the person deciding has never needed it. A form, transportation, accessible information, or help handling paperwork can make the difference between a right on paper and a right someone can use.
Nonpartisan access is not a gift to a political party. It is part of treating people as citizens. A government should be able to defend how public money is spent without acting as though helping a voter participate is inherently suspicious.
Our fictional stair-builder illustrates the attitude, not an actual construction project. The wheelchair user looks directly at him because the joke belongs to the man congratulating himself on the barrier.
Public officials love the phrase “remove red tape” when somebody wealthy wants a permit. The enthusiasm can become remarkably selective when the paperwork stands between an ordinary person and the ballot box.
Today’s SI translation: Stair Installation. The committee has made access worse and would like credit for the craftsmanship.
Related: More from dontcallit.si.
Questions before the applause
Is the restriction already final?
The linked Federal Register document is a proposal, not a final rule.
What spending does the proposal cover?
It addresses costs under federal awards, including voter-registration campaigns, drives, and related activities.
Are the ramp and stairs real?
No. They are a satirical metaphor for barriers imposed by officials.
Receipts
Reporting checked October 5, 2026. Later developments may change the underlying story.
Original AI-created political satire. An invented barrier targets the bureaucrat’s priorities. The scene and labels are invented, not documentary evidence.