Democrats Should Ignore Calls For A Skinnier For The People Act There’s no reason to believe a smaller, less effective bill would stand any better shot at gaining any Republican votes. US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, speaks during a press conference at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, January 6, 2021. - Donald Trump faced one of the darkest days of his presidency Wed. US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, speaks during a press conference at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, January 6, 2021. - Donald Trump faced one of the darkest days of his presidency Wednesday with the US Congress poised to certify Joe Biden s White House victory and Democrats on track to take control of the Senate with a pair of stunning upset victories in Georgia. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
Simply put, even if they do move to a simple majority, Democrats might end up advancing important-but-incremental proposals that are not the grand ideas that dominated the presidential primary debates last year.
New Jerseyans are far from powerless in this struggle: Support state-level organizations that fight back and pressure our senators to act forcefully from Washington
Credit: Courtesy The Hub Project)
Jack Miller
Last week, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed a new state voting law that should scare anyone who believes in democracy. The law limits the use of ballot drop boxes, gives the Republican state Legislature power to take over county election boards and even makes it illegal to hand out food or water to voters standing in line. Yes, you read that correctly: It’s now illegal in Georgia to give voters water. Unfortunately, Georgia’s attack on voting rights is just the tip of the iceberg. Bills like these are advancing in state Legislatures everywhere. Here’s how New Jerseyans can help fight back.
By Mark Hedin, Ethnic Media Services
Published April 1, 2021
Voting Rights Deputy Director, Sophia Lin Lakin (Ethnic Media Services)
Less than a week after the state of Georgia enacted new voting rules, a third federal lawsuit is seeking to have the changes overturned.
The Southern Poverty Law Center, ACLU and NAACP, acting on behalf of religious, student and ethnic minority-serving organizations, allege the new regulations are unconstitutional and violate the federal Voting Rights Act.
“This law (Georgia S.B. 202) is voter suppression, plain and simple, aimed at making it harder for black and brown and other historically disenfranchised communities to have a voice in our democracy,” Sophia Lin Lakin, deputy director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project, said in a press briefing March 30.
The word “filibuster” might evoke the old movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington in which Jimmy Stewart portrays an idealistic freshman senator who speaks for a grueling 23 hours to expose corruption.
That romanticized act of senators pleading their case until they drop is no longer required, and the filibuster often blocks bills that a majority of Americans want.
Filibusters require 60 votes to pass anything. GOP senators would have killed President Joe Biden s popular COVID-19 aid package with a filibuster since no Republicans voted for the bill.
That COVID-19 bill became law through a limited-use procedure called reconciliation that only requires a simple majority for approval.