Texas House Democrats Fly to Washington D.C. to Block Voting Rights Bill
House Democrats from Texas left the state yesterday in an effort to block Republicans from passing a new voting law in the remaining 27 days of the special legislative session. Two chartered planes carrying the majority of Democrats who left Texas for D.C. landed in the nation’s capitol last night. According to a source familiar with their plans, the group is hoping to meet with U.S. Senate Democrats. The move places Texas at the heart of the national fight over voting rights with GOP lawmakers turning to former President Trump’s lies about widespread voter fraud into a push for new laws that limit mail in voting, early voting and more. Florida, Georgia and Iowa have already enacted their own voting laws.
President Biden will deliver a voting rights speech later this afternoon in Philadelphia. According to the White House he will deliver ‘remarks on actions to protect the sacred, constitutional right to vote.’ His speech comes after Senate Republicans blocked a sweeping voting rights, election overhaul and government ethics package last month and the Supreme Court’s ruling that limited the ability of minorities challenging state laws they say are discriminatory under the Voting Rights Act.