For the People Act of 2019
Floor Speech
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. MOORE. Madam Chair, I rise today to offer an amendment to H.R. 1, the For the People Act, which would, among other provisions, require Federal and State governments to physically provide voting registration materials at the same time they provide notification of a restoration of voting rights under the bill. Voting is the most powerful voice that we have in our democracy.
As a Wisconsinite, I am proud to stand today to fight for everyone's right to vote. Wisconsin has been the petri dish for some of the most pernicious voting suppression efforts, including partisan gerrymandering, all designed to marginalize some votes.
Where our votes are counted, our voices are heard. I am here to say no more--no more--to suppression.
Anyone who works to suppress the vote does not support democracy, Madam Chair. Anyone who limits the ability of all people to express their voice through the ballot does not support democracy.
Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Chair, I rise this time in opposition to this amendment.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. MOORE. Madam Chair, may I inquire of the Chair how much time I have left.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. MOORE. Madam Chair, let me commend the gentleman for his active participation in the First Step Act, the criminal justice reform. Let me commend him on his efforts to restore freedom to felons and, as he indicated, murderers and drug dealers and other kinds of criminals who he worked so hard to restore their right to freedom.
This amendment deals with really low-hanging fruit in terms of criminal justice reform. It just says that, when the department has decided that someone has finished their term, when they have finished their sentence, when they are released, they would simply receive those instructions as to how to register to vote.
If there is a pedophile--and I would have welcomed the gentleman's amendment--perhaps it can be part of the rules to say that you must vote by absentee ballot.
Madam Chair, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren), chairwoman of the committee.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. MOORE. Madam Chair, I thank the gentlewoman for that clarification.
Democracy demands hard work, and, again, I commend the gentleman for his hard work to put criminals back onto the street.
This is very low-hanging fruit. There have been studies that have indicated that restoring the voting rights of felons really means that they will be more likely to not re-offend because we are bringing them back into the civil discourse of our communities.
Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Chair, I certainly wish that the underlying piece of legislation actually addressed our concerns, which is why I would urge both sides of the aisle to send this back to committee to ensure that, while it doesn't specifically say that State laws can't be followed when it comes to allowing sex offenders into polling places, it also doesn't prevent it. That is the problem with this top-down overreach.
There is nothing in this bill, H.R. 1, that would prevent a sex offender from walking in and demanding his or her right to vote while surrounded by children that he or she is not allowed around because of a previous conviction or a sex offender registration status.
I appreciate my colleague from Wisconsin's work on the First Step Act, also; and I also have to offer a correction.
The First Step Act was actually to get nonviolent offenders out of our prisons, petty drug users who have been put away because maybe they didn't have the information that the assistant U.S. attorney wanted and then, all of a sudden, they are ratcheted into a long jail sentence because of mandatory minimums. These are the issues that have bipartisanship.
By no means does the First Step Act, or any act of criminal justice reform that I support or that anybody else I know would support, want murderers out of prison. That is not the case.
If that is the case, we have some more questions about this amendment and we have some more questions about this bill. We want to make sure those jail cells are reserved for the people who are the most hardened criminals.
We have got to work together on criminal justice reform to take the next step in the First Step Act. We need to make it better, but it is all for nonviolent offenders.
I have some serious concerns when sex offenders get out of prison or maybe they don't even go to prison for that long, like Jared, the Subway guy, because he may have had a lot of money, may have had the ability to hire a good lawyer; but so many petty drug offenders who are going to be the beneficiary of the First Step Act didn't.
Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. MOORE. Madam Chair, just in closing, I hope that my colleague will support this amendment. It doesn't deal with murderers or pedophiles. It deals with people who are coming out of prison and being notified of their rights and responsibilities with regard to voting.
Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. MOORE. Madam Chair, my amendment simply requires an ongoing evaluation after every Federal election of the efforts to ensure that those with disabilities have successfully been able to exercise their right to vote.
The Government Accountability Office would be charged with assessing polling place accessibility, privacy issues, and the extent of poll worker training on the rights of individuals with disabilities, as well as on accessible voting machines, among other identified barriers. They would provide their recommendations, if any, to Congress.
I recently had a constituent come into my office and speak about the continued challenges faced by those with disabilities when it comes to exercising this fundamental right, such as inaccessible voting machines that were located and situated as to not provide privacy for the voter.
And this is not just an anecdotal evidence of the problem. According to the National Council on Independent Living, over 2 million people with disabilities didn't vote in 2016, and this isn't just an issue of voter apathy. Study after study shows that our voting system is still inaccessible.
What we know is that, even with laws in place, not all polling places are accessible because of physical barriers, unprepared and untrained staff, or accessible equipment that is either not functional or turned off.
Let me be clear: This bill takes steps forward to address those barriers, and I appreciate the addition of those measures.
Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Chair, I claim the time in opposition to the amendment, although I am not opposed to it.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. MOORE. Can the Chair inform me about the time available to both of us?
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. MOORE. Madam Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Sarbanes).
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. MOORE. Madam Chair, I just want to thank the gentleman, again, for his support of this amendment.
I think that America's motto, E Pluribus Unum--out of many, one--will really be honored by this reporting requirement which I believe will provide information that will move us closer to an election process that is truly inclusive and accessible for all Americans. That is what makes democracy work.
Madam Chair, I urge a ``yes'' vote on my amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Source