IS CONSIDERING A BILL THAT
WOULD, SURPRISE, SURPRISE, MAKE
IT MUCH HARDER TO VOTE IN THE
NEXT ELECTION.
AS ITS WRITTEN RIGHT NOW, THE
BILL WOULD LIMIT POLLING PLACES
AND EARLY VOTING, ALLOW PARTISAN
POLL WATCHERS TO VIDEOTAPE
VOTERS, WHICH SOUNDS AWFUL.
ITS ONE OF HUNDREDS OF SUCH
BILLS, MOSTLY SPONSORED BY
REPUBLICANS, INTRODUCED IN STATE
LEGISLATORS KROOCH THE SS ACROSS
VOTING RESTRICTIONS HAVE ALREADY
PASSED IN 11 STATES.
IND
IDAHO, INDIANA, KENTUCKY,
MONTANA, WYOMING, UTAH.
MANY BILLS SOUND SO STRIKINGLY
SIMILAR, ITS PRETTY CLEAR THEY
WERENT BORN IN THE ORGANIC
LABORATORIES OF DEMOCRACY.
TONIGHT, WE HAVE A BETTER IDEA
OF WHERE THE LANGUAGE IS COMING
FROM.
MOTHER JONES RECEIVED LEAKED
VIDEO OF THE HERITAGE FOUNDATION
AND ITS DONORS.
IN IT, JESSICA ANDERSON, THE
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE
HERITAGE SISTER ORGANIZATION,
APPEARS TO BASICALLY BRAG ABOUT
HELPING WRITE THE VOTER
RESTRICTION BILLS AND GIVE THEM
A GRASSROOTS VIBE.
>> WERE WORKING WITH THESE
STATE LEGISLATORS TO MAKE SURE
THEY HAVE ALL OF THE INFORMATION
THEY NEED TO DRAFT THE BILLS, IN
SOME CASES WE ACTUALLY DRAFT
THEM FOR THEM.
OR WE HAVE A SENTINEL ON OUR
BEHALF GIVE THEM THE MODEL
LEGISLATION SO IT HAS THAT
GRASSROOTS FROM THE BOTTOM UP
TYPE OF VIBE.
>> WE HAVE A SENTINEL GIVE IT TO
THEM SO IT HAS THAT GRASSROOTS
VIBE.
ASKED FOR COMMENT BY MOTHER
JONES, JESSICA ANDERSON
RESPONDED, WERE PROUD OF OUR
WORK AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL AND
IN STATES ACROSS THIS COUNTRY TO
PROMOTE COMMON SENSE REFORMS
THAT MAKE IT EASIER TO VOTE AND
HARDER TO CHEAT.
WE HAVE BEEN TRANSPARENT ABOUT
OUR PLANS IN PUBLIC WITH OUR
POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS AND WE
WONT BE INTIMIDATED BY THE LEFT
SMEAR CAMPAIGN AND CANCEL
CULTURE.
DONT WORRY, JESSICA.
WERE NOT HERE TO CANCEL YOU.
ARI BERMAN BROKE THE EXCLUSIVE
STORY TODAY.
GIVE US CONTEXT, WHATS THE
EVENT, WHO IS JESSICA ANDERSON,
AND WHAT IS SHE DESCRIBING IN
THE VIDEO YOU OBTAINED?
>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME BACK.
SO, YES CAW ANDERSON IS
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF HERITAGE
ACTION FOR AMERICA, WHICH IS THE
SISTER ORGANIZATION OF THE
HERITAGE FOUNDATION.
SHE IS AT AN EVENT ON APRIL 22nd
IN ARIZONA FOR THEIR TOP DONORS.
AND SHE IS GOING THROUGH AND
TALKING ABOUT HOW THEY ARE
WRITING WHAT SHE CALLED MODEL
LEGISLATION RESTRICTING VOTING
RIGHTS ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
HERITAGE IS LITERALLY WRITING
THESE BILLS FOR REPUBLICAN STATE
LEGISLATORS IN TEXAS, IN
ARIZONA, IN GEORGIA, IN FLORIDA,
AND THATS WHY WE HAVE SEEN SO
MANY BILLS SUPPRESSING THE RIGHT
TO VOTE IN SUCH A SHORT PERIOD
OF TIME, THAT ARE ALL BASICALLY
EXACTLY THE SAME.
ITS NOT A COINCIDENCE THATS
HAPPENING.
HERITAGE IS LITERALLY
COORDINATING THIS EFFORT AND
BRAGGING ABOUT IT AT THIS DONOR
MEETING.
>> YEAH, IN FACT, SHE TALKS
ABOUT, THE IOWA THING IS
INTERESTING.
WE DID COVER IT ON THE SHOW, BY
THE WAY, AND IT WAS ONE OF THE
FIRST.
SHE SAYS WE SORT OF DID IT AND
NO ONE NOTICED AND WE WERE
LAUGHING TO OURSELVES LIKE WE
GOT AWAY WITH ONE, MORE OR LESS.
HERE SHE IS TALKING ABOUT
PRESSURING GOVERNOR KEMP IN
GEORGIA TO NOT LOSE HIS NERVE
AND BULLDOZE THROUGH.
TAKE A LISTEN.
>> I WAS ABLE TO SIT DOWN WITH
GOVERNOR KEMP THREE DAYS BEFORE
HE SIGNED THE ELECTION PACKAGE
IN GEORGIA, AND I HAD ONE
MESSAGE FOR HIM.
DO NOT WAIT TO SIGN THAT BILL.
IF YOU WAIT EVEN AN HOUR, YOU
WILL LOOK WEAK.
THIS BILL NEEDS TO BE SIGNED
IMMEDIATELY.
>> IS JESSICA ANDERSONS
BACKGROUND, WAS SHE A TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL, IS THAT
RIGHT?
>> YEAH, SHE WAS A TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL.
I THINK WHATS SO REVEALING
ABOUT THAT IS HERITAGE FROM THE
VERY BEGINNING COORDINATED THE
ENTIRE CAMPAIGN TO PASS VOTER
SUPPRESSION IN GEORGIA.
THEY HELPED WRITE THE
LEGISLATION.
THEY LOBBIED FOR THE
LEGISLATION.
AND THEN, ONCE THE LEGISLATION
PASSED, THEY SAID TO BRIAN KEMP,
YOU HAVE TO SIGN IT IMMEDIATELY.
THATS WHAT HE DID, HE SIGNED IT
WITHIN AN HOUR.
THEY GAVE THE SAME MESSAGE TO
REPUBLICAN GOVERNORS IN ARIZONA,
IN FLORIDA, IN TEXAS.
THEY HAVE DONE THE SAME THING.
THE GOVERNOR OF ARIZONA RUSHED
TO SIGN THE NEW VOTER
SUPPRESSION LAW JUST AN HOUR
AFTER IT PASSED IN ARIZONA THIS
WEEK.
RON DeSANTIS SIGNED THE VOTER
SUPPRESSION BILL IN FLORIDA AS A
FOX AND FRIENDS EXCLUSIVE.
SO WHAT YOU HAVE HERE IS ONE OF
THE MOST INFLUENTIAL DARK MONEY
GROUPS IN REPUBLICAN CIRCLES
WRITING VOTER SUPPRESSION LAWS
IN SECRET TO MAKE IT HARDER FOR
BLACK, BROWN, AND YOUNG PEOPLE
TO BE ABLE TO VOTE.
THIS IS A REALLY SHOCKING
DEVELOPMENT FOR DEMOCRACY.
>> YEAH, AND ONE OF THE THINGS
YOU SEE IN THIS PRESENTATION IS
THEY ARE VERY FOCUSED.
YOU HAVE THEITATES DOING THIS
AND NOW THERES FEDERAL
LEGISLATION, HR-1, S-1, THE FOR
THE PEOPLE ACT, WHICH WOULD BE
SORT OF A BASELINE THRESHOLD TO
VOTING ACCESS, WHICH WOULD
REGULARIZE ACROSS THE COUNTRY AS
WELL AS CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM
ASPECTS AND A BUNCH OF OTHER
THINGS.
THEY HAVE THAT, JESSICA
ANDERSON, AGAIN, THE WOMAN YOU
SAW WHO RUNS THE HERITAGE SISTER
NETWORK, A PERSON YOU SHOULD
KNOW ABOUT WHO IS DOING A LOT OF
WORK THAT SHE WOULD WANT YOU TO
KNOW ABOUT.
SHE TALKS ABOUT KILLING HR-1 AND
S-1 AS TOP PRIORITIES FOR THEM.
>> SHE DOES.
SHE SAYS IF THEY DONT KILL S-1,
WE LOSE OUR REPUBLIC PERIOD.
THATS THE LANGUAGE SHE USED.
THEY HAVE A TWO-PRONGED APPROACH
HERE.
THEYRE SPENDING $24 MILLION TO
MAKE IT HARDER TO VOTE IN EIGHT
BATTLEGROUND STATES AND THEYRE
TRYING TO BLOCK THE FEDERAL
LEGISLATION THAT WOULD MAKE IT
EASIER TO VOTE.
AND THE FASCINATING THING HERE
IS THAT YOU HAVE DARK MONEY
FUNDING AND ORGANIZING VOTER
SUPPRESSION.
THATS THE EXACT THING THE FOR
THE PEOPLE ACT WOULD STOP.
THATS WHY THE FOR THE PEOPLE
ACT HAS MONEY AND POLITICS AND
VOTING RIGHTS COMBINED.
BECAUSE THIS IS WHAT WERE
SEEING.
WERE SEEING AN ATTACK ON VOTING
RIGHTS THATS BEING ORGANIZED
AND FUNDED BY MILLIONS AND
MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN DARK
MONEY.
SO THESE ISSUES ARE CONNECTED.
THE ONLY WAY TO FIX OUR
DEMOCRACY IS TO LOOK AT THESE
ISSUES HOLISTICALLY, AND THATS
WHY CONSERVATIVES AND
REPUBLICANS ARE SO TERRIFIED OF
THE FOR THE PEOPLE ACT, BECAUSE
THEY KNOW IT WILL FIX OUR
DEMOCRACY AND THE VERY WAYS
THEYRE TRYING TO UNDERMINE IT.
>> YEAH, AMAZING REPORTING, AS
ALWAYS, ARI.