-The governor of Texas threatened
to arrest Democratic lawmakers who fled the state
to block a Draconian new voter suppression law designed
to keep Republicans in power.
For more on this, it's time for "A Closer Look."
♪♪
I'm sure I don't have to remind you
that the 2020 election results were, for the most part,
very bad for Republicans.
Yes, they won back seats in the House,
but they lost the popular vote by seven million to a Democrat
who got the most votes in American history;
they lost the Electoral College in a landslide;
and they even lost several states
that were historically red, like Georgia and Arizona,
where they also lost all four Senate seats.
In fact, Biden,
his win in Georgia was confirmed so many times,
he turned it into a joke when he was campaigning there
for the Democratic Senate candidates.
-Thank you for standing strong
to make sure your voices were heard,
your votes were counted
and counted
and counted again!
[ Laughter ]
I'm starting to feel like I won Georgia three times.
[ Horns blaring ] [ Cheering and applause ]
-One of the few things I'll miss about COVID-era politics
is the drive-in rallies.
It's the only time in history
we'll be able to look back and ask,
"Was he giving a speech or crossing against the light?"
I know it was Georgia, but the sound of honking
just makes it feel like New York,
like he should've been up there
with the Times Square Spider-Man
and a cigarette-smoking cockroach.
[ Smoker's voice ] Can you believe this Mets bullpen?
They blew a five-run lead against the Pirates!
[ Laughter ]
What do you mean, I can't vote because I'm a cockroach?
I have a valid ID.
[ Laughter ]
It was like that stage is in the middle of 42nd Street
during rush hour traffic.
[ As Biden ] I won Georgia three times.
[ New York accent ] I don't care if you won Miss America!
I got to get this ass[bleep] to JFK!
[ Laughter ] I'm sorry, did you just call me an ass[bleep]?
[ New York accent ] Oh, sorry, pal.
I thought you couldn't hear me over the Taxi TV.
Actually, I'm trying to turn down
the Taxi TV. Do you know how to do that?
[ New York accent ] Hey, I didn't put it there!
Take it up with Cat Greenleaf.
[ Laughter ]
Now, the losses in Georgia and Arizona
really freaked out Republicans
because it meant the electoral map was shifting.
States that were traditionally red were suddenly in play
and the GOP's built-in advantage
in the Electoral College was eroding.
And that was especially evident in Texas,
where Trump won with the smallest margin
for a Republican in 24 years
and Biden got the largest percentage
of any Democratic candidate
since Jimmy Carter won the state in 1976.
A fact that surprised me
because everything's bigger in Texas,
but, according to this photo, Jimmy Carter is super small.
[ Laughter ] When I was young and I heard him
referred to as a peanut farmer, I assumed he farmed peanuts.
But was he a farmer the size of a peanut?
[ Laughter ] Don't get me wrong.
He's the best. I love him.
He's a world-renowned humanitarian,
human rights activist.
I'm just saying, judging from this photo,
if he tried to wear a cowboy hat,
he'd get lost in it.
[ As Carter ] Rosalynn.
Rosalynn, help. I'm stuck in the hat.
[ Laughter ]
Again, as a reminder,
I spent the last two weeks in impression camp.
[ Laughter ] The point is,
Republicans are terrified of the possibility
that Democrats could continue making gains in Texas
and potentially win the state's electoral votes
in a future presidential election.
They're not hiding it or being shy about it.
Here's Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick
at the Conservative Political Action Conference
over the weekend, telling the crowd
that, if they lose Texas, they'll lose the entire country.
-In Texas, we are
the last man standing.
There are a lot of conservative
and red states around the country,
but if we fall, America falls.
The electoral votes of New York,
California and New York combined together
means we could never elect a conservative or Republican
to the White House ever again.
I can tell you
that, as lieutenant governor of this great state
that I'm blessed and honored to serve,
[ Measuredly ] we're not ever going to let that happen.
-Why do these guys always sound like
overexcited LARPers in the park?
[ English accent ] By order of the queen,
I shall not allow this heresy.
Calm down, Dan. You work at Hobby Lobby.
So now, though, they're just admitting it.
They don't want to lose Texas.
That's what this is all about.
And it's one thing to say, "We can't lose Texas,
so we have to work on our message and our policies."
It's another to say, "We can't lose Texas,
so we're changing the rules.
It's like Subway deciding between actually using tuna
or calling it toona and hoping no one notices.
So Texas Republicans are afraid that, if Democrats make gains,
that they could be locked out of the White House
for the foreseeable future and they're desperate
to preserve their political power in the state
any way they can.
By Patrick's own admission, GOP success nationally depends
on Republicans keeping control in Texas,
which is why Texas Governor Greg Abbott
called a special legislative session for this month
to pass a series of Draconian voter suppression laws.
-In Texas, the state legislature
is set to vote this week
on two restrictive voting bills.
The legislation moved forward yesterday after a heated debate.
Critics say the measures unfairly harm Black voters.
-The proposed Texas legislation
includes banning 24-hour and drive-through voting,
new voter ID requirements for mail-in ballots,
and expanding the powers of partisan pollwatchers.
-They want to ban drive-through voting?
How can you be against drive-throughs?
The pandemic's been a nightmare, but one thing it's taught me is
I love not having to get out of my car.
Last week I had my appendix removed
and I just left the engine running.
There's nothing --
[ Laughter ]
One more time.
What was that look?
Great. Great.
[ Laughter ]
Definitely glad we saw the open cut.
[ Laughter ]
There's nothing more American than a drive-through.
If you ask me, not only should you be able
to vote via drive-through, but, while you're there,
you should also be able to deposit a check,
get your car washed, and pick up
a Doritos Locos Taco Supreme.
Doritos Locos Taco Supreme,
made with 100% all-natural beeeph.
That's beeeph, with three "E's" and a "ph."
[ Laughter ]
These bills are obviously designed to make voting harder
and, in particular, target Black voters.
For example, in an earlier version of the bill,
it would've implemented a...
And of course they were targeting Black voters.
What other possible excuse could they have
for banning voting on Sunday mornings?
Did they not want to bump up
against everyone's weekly yoga in the park class?
Because we're all capable of doing both.
I can get up first thing in the morning to vote
and then make my way over to the top of the longmeadow
in time to do child's pose,
Linda!
I know you're mad because I was
five minutes late last week
and I immediately skipped to cat-cow
and you said, "You have to start in child's pose.
It represents birth." And I said,
"Oh, does it, Linda?
[ Laughter ] Is that what it represents?
Can you tell me more, since this is my first time
doing yoga, Linda?"
[ Whispering ] Also,
I know it was you who farted, Linda.
[ Laughter ]
[ Mouthing "I know it was you." ]
Republicans ended up backtracking
and removing that provision after a backlash,
although their explanation of what happened was ludicrous.
They claim they weren't targeting Black voters.
The bill had just been misprinted and nobody caught it.
-First of all, 11:00 doesn't make
any more sense than 1:00.
Why would banning early voting
before 11:00 am on Sunday
make elections more secure?
You guys afraid the pollworkers would be too hung over
to detect fraudulent ballots?
"Uh, my vision's super blurry this morning,
but your ID looks good to me,
Mr. Cockroach."
"Cockroach?! I'm a cicada, you dunderhead!"
[ Laughter ] I've never been insulted in all my life,
which, as you all know, is 17 years.
Seventeen years. I'm still in my prime."
"Oh, you got to be 18 to vote."
[ Laughter ]
"How convenient.
This is cicada suppression."
So, that provision was eventually removed
after a backlash and a walkout by Texas Democrats,
but, still, it's been clear from day one
what this is all about.
Republicans admitted it.
They want to hold on to power in Texas.
And let's also just keep in mind that Texas is already, arguably,
the most difficult state to vote in.
Even just registering to vote is a hassle.
Good Lord!
Sounds like the directions
to one of those board games
you only find in upstate B&Bs.
Anybody up for a game of -- ooh!
[ Laughter ] Oh, oh! Hold on!
Wi-Fi's back on.
Ooh! Thank God.
Second, the only situation where I'd ever want to be deputized is
as the nerdy sidekick
to an outlaw cop played by Bruce Willis.
And the whole movie, I'd be begging him
to deputize me and he'd refuse
and then at the end, there'd be a climactic,
heartwarming moment right before we storm the bad guys' hideout
where he puts his arm on my shoulder and says...
[ As Willis ] Meyers,
I hereby deputize me to be my deputy.
And, yes, in this movie, I play myself,
just because it's easier.
I want to have to remember all my character details,
like a fake name or a job.
I mean, despite what you might think,
from all my flawless impressions,
I'm not a professional actor.
[ Laughter ] It's just a side hobby of mine
that I happen to be very good at.
Stanislavski begged me to teach him.
He pleaded with me, "Please, teach me how you do
your Vince Vaughn impression." And I'd say...
[ As Vaughn ] Buddy, buddy, buddy, you got to relax.
[ Laughter ]
I should admit impressions camp was a camp you go to
to make you stop doing impressions.
[ Laughter ]
-[ Clapping ]
-Anyway, the rules in Texas are already clearly skewed
to the type of voters Republicans want
to show up to the polls. For example...
That's really the whole game.
The only way it could be more obvious is
if they said you can't use a driver's license,
but you can use a...
So those are the rules that already exist in Texas.
Now, Republicans want to make it even worse,
which led Texas Democrats to flee the state,
in a last-ditch attempt to stop the bills from passing.
And Fox News criticized the Democrats
for bringing beer with them.
-Texas state Democrats are
in Washington, D.C. this morning after leaving the state
in an attempt to block Republican efforts
to pass a bill making it harder to vote.
More than 50 House Democrats got on a plane
and flew to D.C. on Monday afternoon,
vowing to stay away from Texas until next month,
so that Republicans can't vote on anything.
Lawmakers need a quorum --
a certain number of members present --
in order to vote.
-Fifty-eight Democrats.
Texas Democrats, are taking a stand
against Republican voting bills by --
What did they do?
They hopped on a couple of private jets
and they're flying to D.C., but, of course,
first, they have to take some selfies
to show the folks what they're doing.
-And they grab the beer.
They did, a case of Miller Lite, I think.
-Why do Republicans think it's a gotcha
to point out they had a case of Miller Lite?
So what, is the GOP really going after
Texan beer drinkers now?
Everyone knows real Americans
drink vodka, peach Schnapps, and cranberry juice.
And, yeah, that's a sex on the beach,
or, as it's known in Texas,
a throwdown at the hoedown.
[ Laughter ] Now, if you are the Republicans
and you want to dispel the impression
that this is just an authoritarian power grab,
the absolute last thing you'd want to do is threaten
to arrest the Democrats who fled the state
and, yet, that's exactly what Abbott did.
-I can and I will continue
to call special session after special session
after special session,
all the way up until election next year.
And so if these people want to be hanging out
wherever they're hanging out on this taxpayer-paid junket,
they're going to have to be prepared to do it
for well over a year.
As soon as they come back into the state of Texas,
they will be arrested,
they will be cabined inside the Texas Capitol,
until they get their job done.
-A surefire way to make clear
you're the villain in any situation is
to threaten to arrest your opponents,
especially in the South.
You sound like Boss Hogg threatening
to round up those Duke boys.
[ As Hogg ] Oh, I'm gonna get them Duke boys!
And, when I do, we're gonna cabin them inside the Capitol!
But, somehow, another Texas politician managed
to outdo Abbott, in terms of pure shamelessness
and I'm sure, by now, you've probably guessed who it was.
-What you're seeing the Democrats do here
is a political stunt.
And, you know, I will say it's ironic
because they were getting on their private jet
to fly to Washington, D.C.
They almost surely had to show identification
to get on that jet. -[ Laughs ]
-And, yet, they're doing this in a fit
because they don't want mail-in ballots to be verified.
They don't want the signatures to be verified.
They don't want basic integrity steps
to be strengthened in the state of Texas.
This is, at the end of the day, politics,
and they need to get back to doing their jobs.
-It's not ironic that they had to show ID to get on a plane,
since, unlike voting, flying on a plane
is not a sacred right protected by the Constitution.
There's no Article 10 that grants every American
the right to get your elbow slammed by a drink cart
while the dude across from you spends 10 minutes trying
to cram a suitcase
into an overhead compartment that's too small.
Of course, if Republicans really wanted
to treat flying the way they treat voting,
then every plane would be forced to idle
on the tarmac for hours, while they wait to take off
because there's only one runway open
and it would be illegal to serve snacks,
not even SunChips, which are barely food.
It's like eating salsa-flavored packing peanuts.
I'm pretty sure there's less actual food in SunChips
than there are in Subway tuna.
Republicans have come out and said
what this is really all about --
they don't want to lose Texas and they're willing
to change the rules to stop that from happening.
It couldn't be more obvious. They admitted it.
They just haven't succeeded yet.
They couldn't pass these bills the first time.
They might not be able to pass them this time,
so if they want to ram them through,
they're going to have to try at least...
-Three times!
[ Horns blaring ] [ Cheering and applause ]
-This has been "A Closer Look."
♪♪
God's Love We Deliver cooks and brings
over two million meals a year
to men, women, and children living with HIV/AIDS,
cancer, and other serious illnesses
and they need your help, now, more than ever.
If you're watching this online, you can hit the Donate button.
Stay safe. Get vaccinated. We love you.