HYDE-SMITH VOTES TO BLOCK DEMOCRATS’ ELECTION ‘POWER GRAB’ BILL
“S.1 is Anything but Bipartisan, and That is Why the Senate is Right to Block It,” Miss. Senator Says
VIDEO: Senator Hyde-Smith Explains Opposition to Democrat Election Reform Scheme.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) today voted to stop legislation authorizing a federal takeover of the American election system, deeming it a “blatant Democrat power grab.”
Hyde-Smith and the entire Senate Republican conference voted Tuesday not to proceed to debate on S.1, an unapologetic effort by congressional Democrats to skew election outcomes in their favor. Last week, Hyde-Smith predicted that the “show vote” was doomed to fail.
I oppose the Democrats’ so-called election reform bill because it is anything but reform. It is a blatant Democrat power grab,” said Hyde-Smith, who serves on the Senate Rules and Administration Committee. “Our right to vote is sacred. Improving voter integrity and election integrity should be bipartisan. S.1 is anything but bipartisan, and that is why the Senate is right to block it.”
In a message to Mississippians, Hyde-Smith pointed to a pair of major flaws among many in the Democrat bill—nullifying state Voter ID laws and forcing taxpayers to finance political campaigns.
“Our state implemented a widely accepted and successful Voter ID law without impeding anyone who is legally eligible to vote. In fact, most Americans support Voter ID requirements,” Hyde-Smith said. “If S.1 became law, an individual could walk into a polling place, register and vote on the spot—without ever showing any proof of identity or residency. If that isn’t a recipe for fraud, I don’t know what is.”
Regarding taxpayers financing the campaigns of politicians and challengers, Hyde-Smith cited a review showing the current sitting U.S. Senate could get more than $1.8 billion in public funds for their campaigns for the next election cycle if they all qualified for and participated in the public financing program. This does not include amounts that would be made available for challengers.
“We’re talking about a lot of your money,” Hyde-Smith said. “Our national debt is approaching $30 trillion. The last thing we should be doing is putting taxpayers on the hook to finance politicians’ campaigns.”
Hyde-Smith has consistently opposed S.1, which would also: require unlimited ballot harvesting; mandate ballot drop boxes; restrict states’ ability to maintain accurate voter rolls; impose costly and burdensome election systems changes on states; require states to give felons the right to vote in federal elections; turn the bipartisan Federal Election Commission into a partisan political body; federalize congressional redistricting; and threaten free speech rights through new donor disclosure requirements.
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