Posted on 02/23/2021 12:04:53 PM PST by lowbridge
All House Democrats signed onto a sweeping election reform bill Monday that they claim will expand voting rights and "clean up corruption" in politics -- as Republicans rip it as a "federal government takeover" and accuse Democrats of trying to change election rules to benefit themselves.
Democracy Reform Task Force Chair Rep. John Sarbanes, D-Md., announced Monday that all House Democrats co-sponsored the legislation — H.R. 1, the For the People Act of 2021.
"House Democrats are united in our steadfast commitment to advance transformational anti-corruption and clean election reforms by swiftly passing H.R. 1," Sarbanes said in a statement Monday.
"Our historic reform effort will end decades of dysfunction in Washington, return power to the people and build a more just, equitable and prosperous country for all Americans," he said.
The bill is expected to be considered on the House floor during the first week of March. Republicans have railed against the bill during previous attempts to bring the legislation to a vote, arguing it would give the federal government more power in deciding the people’s representation.
According to Democrats, the bill would "improve access to the ballot box," by creating an automatic voter registration across the country, and by ensuring that individuals who have completed felony sentences have their full voting rights restored. The bill will also expand early voting and enhance absentee voting by simplifying voting by mail.
The bill also commits Congress to deliver "full congressional voting rights and self-government for the residents of the District of Columbia, which only statehood can provide," prohibits voter roll purges and "ends partisan gerrymandering to prevent politicians from picking their voters."
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
There’s nothing budgetary about this bill, unless you count the inevitable appropriation for enforcement. Reconciliation gets abused with thing like Obozocare, which was also not strictly a budget bill.
If that is the one that gives DC three Presidential electors (Statehood by installment), I heartily agree.
However, I have no problem giving non-states DC, Puerto Rico and Guam/Pacific one elector each and floor vote privileges for their delegates, since each area is full of American citizens. No Senators, though, and no full slates of electors.
DC already has three electoral votes via a Constitutional amendment. It is what I call Statehood by Installment, a.k.a. Piecemeal Statehood.
Were DC to become a state, they would get three new electoral votes. The three electoral votes given to the Federal District by the 23rd Amendment would still belong to the now greatly reduced Federal District, consisting of the White House, Congress and a few other buildings. The full time population of this reduced Federal District would be well under 1000, and consist of the First Family, the VP and family and perhaps a handful of others.
Oh, dear.
Never trust ANYTHING with “People” in the title. Ever.
Independence for Puerto Rico and Guam!!!!!
Nothing-hood for DC!!!! (Any entity that creates a BLM Plaza nd keeps peaceful right-wing demonstrators out of it deserves NO voting privileges whatsoever!!!!)
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