Source: United States Senator for California – Dianne Feinstein
Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today released a statement supporting the voting rights legislation pending before the Senate. She explained that if Republicans continue to block the legislation, the Senate should change its filibuster rules so that Republican senators must remain on the Senate floor and speak, after which the Senate would vote on the legislation.
“The need for federal legislation to protect the sacred and fundamental right to vote is clear,” Feinstein said.
She continued: “The right to vote is a cornerstone of our democracy, enshrined in our Constitution. And the Constitution also makes clear that it is the duty of Congress to ensure that the fundamental right to vote is protected.
“Sadly, this legislation has become a partisan issue, even though voting rights has traditionally passed the Senate by a strong bipartisan majority and been signed into law by presidents of both parties. In today’s Senate, it has become all too easy for either party to block action on important legislation.”
Feinstein added: “If my Republican colleagues want to block this voting rights legislation, I believe they should have to stand on the Senate floor and explain to the American people why that is the case, even as the right to vote is under attack in statehouses across the country.”
Senator Feinstein’s full statement, which she also entered into the Congressional Record, is available here:
“I rise today in support of two important voting rights bills the Senate is now considering, the “Freedom to Vote Act” and the “John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.”
The “Freedom to Vote Act” would protect access to the ballot by permitting all voters to vote by mail, providing a minimum of 15 days of early in-person voting for federal elections and allowing same-day voter registration at polling places.
The bill would also protect nonpartisan election officials from interference and intimidation and end partisan gerrymandering of congressional districts.
The “John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act” would restore the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by allowing the Justice Department to prevent discriminatory state voting laws from taking effect.
The need for federal legislation to protect the sacred and fundamental right to vote is clear.
Over the last year, we have witnessed a disturbing increase in efforts by state legislatures across the country to make it harder for eligible voters to access and cast their ballots.
Last year, legislators in 49 states introduced more than 440 bills that would make it harder to vote and easier for improper, partisan interference in our election processes.
At least 34 of these restrictive bills have become law in 19 states.
For example, one new law in Georgia gives the partisan State Election Board – composed of members appointed by the majority party of the state legislature – the authority to take over election administration from the existing nonpartisan county boards of elections that have historically been responsible for conducting elections.
Another example is a new law in Iowa that makes it harder for Americans with disabilities to vote by restricting access to absentee ballots and restricting who is allowed to help voters with disabilities return their ballots.
And across the country in red and blue states alike, state legislators are engaging in partisan gerrymandering, strategically redrawing congressional and state legislative maps to prevent some voters from fully participating in the political process by diluting the power of their votes.
This partisan gerrymandering, in effect, allows elected officials to choose their voters rather than allowing voters to choose their elected officials. This allows one party to design maps that give it a disproportionate edge in state legislatures and delegations in the House of Representatives. It also has an outsized impact on minority communities, who all too often see their votes diluted when maps are drawn to minimize their voting clout.
The right to vote is a cornerstone of our democracy, enshrined in our Constitution. And the Constitution also makes clear that it is the duty of Congress to ensure that the fundamental right to vote is protected.
Sadly, this legislation has become a partisan issue, even though voting rights has traditionally passed the Senate by a strong bipartisan majority and been signed into law by presidents of both parties. In today’s Senate, it has become all too easy for either party to block action on important legislation.
Blocking debate or preventing votes is as easy as denying requests for unanimous consent – Senators don’t even have to enter into debate or explain their opposition to a measure.
Having been in the Senate since 1992 and seen important legislation pass this body, I have resisted calls to change the Senate rules and to limit the rights of the minority. But the Senate filibuster, which was intended to be a tool to promote bipartisanship, has become a tool to stop almost any major legislation.
When Americans thinks about the filibuster, many recall the image of Jimmy Stewart in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington – speaking on the Senate floor, actively debating a piece of legislation and explaining their support or opposition.
It’s time that we return to that tradition of debate and not use the filibuster to prevent us from even talking about a bill.
If my Republican colleagues want to block this voting rights legislation, I believe they should have to stand on the Senate floor and explain to the American people why that is the case, even as the right to vote is under attack in statehouses across the country.
As representatives of the American people, we should be fighting to protect the fundamental right to vote, not standing in the way of it. It should never be a legislator’s goal to make it harder for eligible voters to cast their ballots.
We cannot wait any longer. It is time for Congress to do the job the Constitution gave us: to ensure that the right to vote is protected.”
###