.
. IT
. IT HAS
. IT HAS BEEN A BUSY WEEK ON CAPITOL HILL THIS WEEK
THE HOUSE PASSED A SWEEPING
VOTING RIGHTS AND ETHICS
LEGISLATION OVER UNANIMOUS
REPUBLICAN OPPOSITION.
H.R. ONE TOUCHES ON ALMOST
EVERY ASPECT OF THE ELECTORAL
PROCESS AND AS THE SENATE
PREPARES TO TAKE THAT UP,
THE SUPREME COURT IS DEALING
WITH VOTING RIGHTS AND ELECTION
REFORMS TO TO TALK MORE ABOUT
ALL OF THAT, OUR LEGAL ANALYST
AND MSU PROFESSOR WHITNEY
TRAILOR JOINS US .
PROFESSOR, GOOD MORNING.
GOOD MORNING, GARY.
GOOD MORNING, EVERYONE.
HAPPY FRIDAY.
HAPPY FRIDAY.
ALL RIGHT.
EXPLAIN THIS VOTING RIGHTS BILL
H.R. ONE IT JUST PASSED
THE HOUSE.
IT'S NAMED AFTER JOHN LEWIS,
THE CIVIL RIGHTS ICON WHO
SERVED FOUR DECADES IN
WASHINGTON.
RIGHT.
WASHINGTON. RIGHT. SO THIS BILL THAT'S EXACTLY
RIGHT, GARY.
THIS BILL IS DESIGNED TO REALLY
EXPAND AND PROTECT VOTERS
RIGHTS AND I THINK WE'LL GET TO
IT IN MORE DETAIL.
BUT BROADLY SPEAKING, IT MAKES
IT MAKES VOTING EASIER FOR A
LOT OF A LOT OF FOLKS EXPANDING
THOSE RIGHTS AND VARIOUS WAYS
REPUBLICAN REPUBLICANS ARE
OPPOSED TO THESE KIND OF BILLS
BECAUSE THEY'RE ARGUING IT WILL
LEAD TO FRAUD AND PRIMARILY
BECAUSE THESE ARE ISSUES FOR
THE STATES.
SO THE REPUBLICANS AND
CONSERVATIVES IN GENERAL ARE
REALLY OPPOSING THESE KIND
OF ACTIONS BY CONGRESS BECAUSE
THEY'RE SAYING ELECTIONS SHOULD
BE HANDLED LOCALLY.
THE SUPREME COURT CASE NOW THIS
ONE IS DEALING WITH THE VOTING
RIGHTS ACT OF 1964 FIVE WHICH
CONGRESS PASSED IN ORDER TO
PROTECT THE RIGHTS OF BLACK
VOTERS IN 2013, THOUGH
THE SUPREME COURT LIMITED THOSE
RIGHTS PRIMARILY AROUND SECTION
FIVE.
WELL, NOW THE SUPREME COURT IS
DEALING WITH THE VOTING RIGHTS
ACT AND DEALING WITH SECTION
TWO AND THEY'RE IN ARIZONA
BASICALLY THE QUESTION IS IF
SOMEBODY CAST THEIR BALLOT IN
THE WRONG PRECINCT, SHOULD IT
COUNT EVEN IN A STATEWIDE
BALLOT?
AND THE SECOND ISSUE IS CAN
SOMEONE GATHER UP EVERYONE'S
VOTES, ABSENTEE BALLOTS AND
TURN THEM IN AND
THE REPUBLICANS IN ARIZONA ARE
CHALLENGING THAT AND FOLKS ARE
SAYING LOOK, THAT'S UNFAIR TO
ARIZONA RURAL VOTERS, WHICH IS
PRIMARILY WHICH IS A LARGELY
NATIVE AMERICAN.
SO THAT'S THE ISSUE BETWEEN
THE SUPREME COURT AND THEN
THE HOUSE BILL THAT JUST
PASSED.
YEAH.
PASSED. YEAH. LET'S TALK A LITTLE MORE ABOUT
THAT HOUSE BILL, H.R. ONE.
THE DEMOCRATS SAY THAT THAT IS
NEEDED TO COUNTER SOME OF THE
LEGISLATION THAT THEY'RE SEEING
AROUND THE COUNTRY THAT STATES
ARE PUTTING UP RIGHT NOW.
TALK ABOUT SOME OF THOSE BILLS
IN THE STATE LEGISLATURES.
SURE.
AND I SHOULD MENTION THAT THAT
JUST PASSED THROUGH THE HOUSE
HASN'T GONE TO THE SENATE
THOUGH.
RIGHT.
THOUGH. RIGHT. SO THE NATIONWIDE ONE WOULD
CREATE ESSENTIALLY A NATIONWIDE
AUTOMATIC VOTER REGISTRATION
SYSTEM FOR WHEN EVERYBODY TURNS
18.
IT WOULD EXPAND MAIL IN VOTING.
IT WOULD RESTORE VOTING RIGHTS
TO PEOPLE WITH A PAST FELONY
AND IT WOULD PROTECT AGAINST
STATES INDIVIDUAL STATES
ATTEMPTS TO CREATE MORE
RESTRICTIVE LAWS.
SO AND LIKE I SAID,
THE REPUBLICANS JUST DON'T WANT
OR THE CONSERVATIVES DON'T WANT
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT INVOLVED
AND THEY'RE CONCERNED ABOUT
BALLOT HARVESTING AND FRAUD AND
EVERYBODY ON BOTH SIDES IS
POINTING TO THE 20 ELECTION AS
REASONS FOR THEIR POSITION.
RIGHT.
THE DEMOCRATS ARE SAYING LOOK,
WE NEED TO PROTECT VOTING
RIGHTS BECAUSE WE SAW IT WAS
ATTEMPTED TO BE STIFLED
PRIMARILY IN MINORITY AREAS.
ALL THE VOTES THAT WERE
CHALLENGED IN TWENTY TWENTY
WERE IN MINORITY AREAS.
YOU KNOW, THE REPUBLICANS ARE
SAYING LOOK, THE INTEGRITY
OF THE ELECTION WAS AT STAKE
AND EXPANDING THESE RIGHTS
MAKES IT MORE DIFFICULT TO GET
THAT SECURITY HAS THIS HAS THIS
ALWAYS BEEN CONTROVERSIAL?
I MEAN PEOPLE VOTING IN
ELECTIONS IS JUST SUCH A BASIC
PART OF OUR LIVES IN THIS
COUNTRY.
HAS THIS ALWAYS BEEN SUCH A
CONTENTIOUS THING IN OUR
HISTORY?
THAT'S A GREAT POINT, GARY.
AND I THINK IT REALLY DATES
BACK TO STATES RIGHTS WHICH WAS
AN ISSUE, YOU KNOW, LEADING TO
THE CIVIL WAR, THE CIVIL WAR
AND AND A LOT OF THIS REALLY IS
ABOUT THE ABILITY OF BLACK
PEOPLE BEING ABLE TO VOTE
BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY DURING
SLAVERY THERE WAS NO RIGHT TO
VOTE AND THEN DURING
RECONSTRUCTION AND AFTERWARDS
OR DURING THAT TIME THERE WERE
POLL TAXES, GRANDFATHER CLAUSE
AND JUST OUTRIGHT VIOLENCE
ATTEMPTING TO STOP THE THE
BLACK VOTE AND THAT IS WHEN
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAD TO
GET INVOLVED.
THAT'S ONE OF THE ISSUES.
AND SO THAT'S WHY THERE'S THIS
KIND OF CONTENTIOUS STATES
RIGHTS ARGUMENT.
AND NOW THOUGH I THINK YOU'RE
SEEING A LOT OF WHAT SOME
PEOPLE WOULD CALL DIRECT
DEMOCRACY WITH VOTER REFERENDUM
AND PEOPLE GETTING MORE
INVOLVED AND EVEN THE CIVIL
AND
AND THINGS LIKE THAT WHERE YOU'RE STARTING TO SEE