Senate GOP members blocked a Democrat bill that would have radically changed America’s electoral system and given the federal government more power over the nation’s elections.
The Senate was tied at 50-50, failing to get the 60-vote number needed to push the debate on S. 1, the For the People Act. This stops the Senate from voting on the bill. The legislation would have federalized the electoral system in America, and has come under heavy opposition from conservatives.
Democrat Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (NY) said before the vote that “reactionary” legislatures’ election bills are “voter suppression.”
Schumer on voting bill: Are we had a backslide here in the 21st century? Are we going to let reactionary state legislatures drag us back into the muck of voter suppression? Are we going to let the most dishonest president in history continue to poison our democracy
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) June 22, 2021
Republican Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) said in a comment before the vote:
“The ‘For the People Act’ is yet another Orwellian law with nothing to do with rights but everything to do with giving Democrats control over Washington and the lives of Americans. Republicans wish to bring back confidence in our elections by making it hard to cheat. Democrats want to make it easier to cheat. Why else would they want to stop voter ID and make it harder to keep good voter files? A better name for this terrible bill would be the ‘For Democrats Act.’”
Before the vote, Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) said the measure would “continue a Democrat majority” and would work as an “incumbent dream.”
Although the vote was anticipated to come up short of the 60 votes needed to pass, Schumer pushed the vote anyway. Blackburn told reporters that he did this to placate Democrats’ liberal base.
Blackburn said, “This is about him being concerned about a primary challenge from AOC. He is watching his left flank. They are trying to keep control of the Democratic Party.”
Republican Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) said in a comment after the vote:
“As a former elections commissioner, it is clear that this radical bill is not about democracy, it is about tipping the scales to favor Democrats.”
She added, “We should call it a power grab instead of a bill—and completely reject it.”
Author: Steven Sinclaire
