Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #VRAA
Most recents (7)
Some worry that making changes to the filibuster (there are more than 160 already) will make the Senate more polarized—more like the House—undermining the stability of federal policy. /1
This concern is driven by how polarized our politics has grown. To prove the point, Mitch McConnell (using comic-villain language) threatened to burn down the Senate if Democrats alter the filibuster to pass critical voting & democracy reforms. /2
Of course, this concern is overblown: the filibuster has not saved the Senate from becoming dysfunctional & polarized or ensured stable federal laws and policies. /3
Last week @TravisCrumLaw & @ProfNickStephan wrote two great summaries of #HR4 *as introduced* on @ElectionLawBlog. This week, the House passed HR4... but not before a few final tweaks, one of which is really worth highlighting: *retroactive* retrogression liability under § 2. /1
The John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act moved swiftly from introduction to passage, but there was one set of amendments agreed to at the last minute that can be found in House Report 117-117. /2
congress.gov/congressional-…
congress.gov/congressional-…
Among these is a change to the new provision allowing voters to bring retrogression challenges. This now covers laws enacted "on or after January 1, 2021" (i.e., all of the restrictive laws enacted at the state level over the past half year). Below is the before/after. /3 
The secret Heritage video exposed by @ariberman makes abundantly clear what we’ve known all along: despite what Brian Kemp, Barry Fleming, and GOP officials across the country have said, #SB202 and other anti-voting bills are part of a nationwide GOP-led attack on voting rights.
This attack has been engineered by the far-right Heritage Foundation to disenfranchise voters of color in response to the Big Lie surrounding the 2020 election.
Heritage is, at this very moment, conspiring with Republican state legislators in states like Texas, where voter suppressors are finalizing bills behind closed doors.
In 1943, LDF founder Thurgood Marshall argued before the Supreme Court in Smith v. Allwright. This #voting rights case was a watershed for Black rights and signaled the beginning of the civil rights movement. Marshall considered it his "greatest" case. #HBD #MrCivilRights
The question at the heart of this case was whether state parties prohibiting Black voters from exercising their freedoms in the primary elections violated the 14th and 15th amendments. #SCOTUS found that it did. As a result of this case, Black voter registration skyrocketed.
Of course, Smith v. Allwright was only one step. Ugly displays of voter suppression still mar our elections. The floodgates have opened to a torrent of voter suppression since the #ShelbyCounty decision in 2013 and today's #COVID19 pandemic has only exacerbated these issues.
At 7pm EST, LDF President and Director-Counsel @Sifill_LDF will appear on @60Minutes to discuss the need to safeguard the 2020 elections and protect voters.
"Sometimes when we talk about voter suppression now, we cover it with this veneer of partisan conversation which allows people to turn away from what is fundamentally a very, very ugly racial issue in our country."
We should be working to make voting more accessible, especially amidst a pandemic. That's why we went to court to challenge Alabama's lack of safe and accessible voting processes.
7 yrs. ago today SCOTUS issued the disastrous Shelby decision, gutting the Voting Rights Act & unleashing a torrent of voter suppression. Just days ago we saw Shelby in action: sudden poll closures & long lines ALL OCCURRING in minority-heavy precincts. Coincidence? No.
We need to act fast & #ProtectOurVote by taking up & passing my bipartisan Voting Rights Advancement Act which the House ALREADY passed (#HR4) & is supported by 46 senators. My #VRAA would restore the Voting Rights Act, and in doing so, #RestoreTheVote.
Why is @senatemajldr afraid to release the #VRAA from his legislative graveyard? Empowering all Americans to vote isn't a Democratic or Republican priority; it's the American way. I urge all senators to join me in calling on Leader McConnell to allow a vote to #RestoreTheVote
1/ One of the principal legacies of the Roberts Court will be its systematic undermining of American democracy, greenlighting efforts to rig elections, ignoring gerrymandering, slashing voting rights, and shifting power from the many to the few. #Rucho #SCOTUS
2/ #Rucho is only the latest in a long string of recent #SCOTUS decisions undermining American democracy. Below are some of the biggies:
3/ In Shelby County v. Holder (2013), the Court struck down the heart of the Voting Rights Act, turning a blind eye to ongoing voting discrimination & preventing Congress from putting in place adequate protections against discrimination. #VRAA
