New Election Security Bills Face a One-Man Roadblock: Mitch McConnell

[Anonymous]

Why is Mitch McConnell so reluctant to safeguard our elections from foreign interference?
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/07/us/politics/election-security-mitch-mcconnell.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage

A raft of legislation intended to better secure United States election systems after what the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, called a “sweeping and systematic” Russian attack in 2016 is running into a one-man roadblock in the form of the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.

The bills include a Democratic measure that would send more than $1 billion to state and local governments to tighten election security, but would also demand a national strategy to protect American democratic institutions against cyberattacks and require that states spend federal funds only on federally certified “election infrastructure vendors.” A bipartisan measure in both chambers would require internet companies like Facebook to disclose the purchasers of political ads.

Another bipartisan Senate proposal would codify cyberinformation-sharing initiatives between federal intelligence services and state election officials, speed up the granting of security clearances to state officials and provide federal incentives for states to adopt paper ballots.

But even bipartisan coalitions have begun to crumble in the face of the majority leader’s blockade. Mr. McConnell, long the Senate’s leading ideological opponent to federal regulation of elections, has told colleagues in recent months that he has no plans to consider stand-alone legislation on the matter this term, despite clamoring from members of his own conference and the growing pressure from Democrats who also sense a political advantage in trying to make the Republican response to Russia’s election attack look anemic.

[Anonymous]

How else would the GOP win?

[Anonymous]

#DitchMitch

Please donate!

[Anonymous]

Mitch knows his party needs Russian help to win. He is one of the most corrupt people in politics at any level.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mitch knows his party needs Russian help to win. He is one of the most corrupt people in politics at any level.

+1

[Anonymous]

He’s a treason weasel.

[Anonymous]

Perhaps because McConnell sees that this bill will do nothing to actually make our elections more secure.

Under the provisions of H.R. 1, all jurisdictions are compelled to use no-fault absentee ballots, which can be conveniently filled out and submitted from home. While convenient, they are hardly secure. They have given rise to a practice called ballot harvesting, in which activists track down voters, "help" them fill out their ballots, and then offer to submit them.

The breakdown in the chain of custody for such ballots enabled a North Carolina campaign operative to "lose" hundreds of ballots in the 2018 midterm elections. The same practice, which was illegal in North Carolina, is now legal in California, where late ballots submitted by harvesters broke inexplicably for Democrats and reversed election night outcomes.

How can the nationwide imposition of no-fault absentee ballots possibly be construed as an election security measure? Given the proven willingness of the Russian government to meddle in our elections, is it beyond the realm of possibility that those activists coming to collect your ballot could be paid by a foreign power?

Another provision essentially nullifies voter identification (ID) laws, which Democrats believe depress Democratic turnout in elections. If H.R. 1 becomes law, voters could bypass the ID requirement by simply signing a statement affirming that they are who they claim to be.

Once again, this provision has absolutely no relevance to election security. In fact, it makes elections less secure.

The bypassing of voter ID laws becomes even more concerning when you read what Democrats want to do about voter list maintenance. Their solution to outdated voter rolls is to prohibit states from comparing their voter rolls to the National Change of Address Database or to the databases of other states.

With this provision, voter identities used to vote in multiple states are less likely to be exposed. Now foreign powers could exploit our elections by simply getting people to use voter IDs that are valid in one state to vote in other states.

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/jason-chaffetz-democrats-claim-they-want-election-security-they-really-want-to-secure-election-victories

[Anonymous]

Sleazy democrats love catch phrases to help bury detail

[Anonymous]

The NC race is being used as evidence? Really? Because it was Republicans vote harvesting there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Perhaps because McConnell sees that this bill will do nothing to actually make our elections more secure.

Under the provisions of H.R. 1, all jurisdictions are compelled to use no-fault absentee ballots, which can be conveniently filled out and submitted from home. While convenient, they are hardly secure. They have given rise to a practice called ballot harvesting, in which activists track down voters, "help" them fill out their ballots, and then offer to submit them.

The breakdown in the chain of custody for such ballots enabled a North Carolina campaign operative to "lose" hundreds of ballots in the 2018 midterm elections. The same practice, which was illegal in North Carolina, is now legal in California, where late ballots submitted by harvesters broke inexplicably for Democrats and reversed election night outcomes.

How can the nationwide imposition of no-fault absentee ballots possibly be construed as an election security measure? Given the proven willingness of the Russian government to meddle in our elections, is it beyond the realm of possibility that those activists coming to collect your ballot could be paid by a foreign power?

Another provision essentially nullifies voter identification (ID) laws, which Democrats believe depress Democratic turnout in elections. If H.R. 1 becomes law, voters could bypass the ID requirement by simply signing a statement affirming that they are who they claim to be.

Once again, this provision has absolutely no relevance to election security. In fact, it makes elections less secure.

The bypassing of voter ID laws becomes even more concerning when you read what Democrats want to do about voter list maintenance. Their solution to outdated voter rolls is to prohibit states from comparing their voter rolls to the National Change of Address Database or to the databases of other states.

With this provision, voter identities used to vote in multiple states are less likely to be exposed. Now foreign powers could exploit our elections by simply getting people to use voter IDs that are valid in one state to vote in other states.

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/jason-chaffetz-democrats-claim-they-want-election-security-they-really-want-to-secure-election-victories

Well, then why is he the only one in the GOP blocking this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Perhaps because McConnell sees that this bill will do nothing to actually make our elections more secure.

Under the provisions of H.R. 1, all jurisdictions are compelled to use no-fault absentee ballots, which can be conveniently filled out and submitted from home. While convenient, they are hardly secure. They have given rise to a practice called ballot harvesting, in which activists track down voters, "help" them fill out their ballots, and then offer to submit them.

The breakdown in the chain of custody for such ballots enabled a North Carolina campaign operative to "lose" hundreds of ballots in the 2018 midterm elections. The same practice, which was illegal in North Carolina, is now legal in California, where late ballots submitted by harvesters broke inexplicably for Democrats and reversed election night outcomes.

How can the nationwide imposition of no-fault absentee ballots possibly be construed as an election security measure? Given the proven willingness of the Russian government to meddle in our elections, is it beyond the realm of possibility that those activists coming to collect your ballot could be paid by a foreign power?

Another provision essentially nullifies voter identification (ID) laws, which Democrats believe depress Democratic turnout in elections. If H.R. 1 becomes law, voters could bypass the ID requirement by simply signing a statement affirming that they are who they claim to be.

Once again, this provision has absolutely no relevance to election security. In fact, it makes elections less secure.

The bypassing of voter ID laws becomes even more concerning when you read what Democrats want to do about voter list maintenance. Their solution to outdated voter rolls is to prohibit states from comparing their voter rolls to the National Change of Address Database or to the databases of other states.

With this provision, voter identities used to vote in multiple states are less likely to be exposed. Now foreign powers could exploit our elections by simply getting people to use voter IDs that are valid in one state to vote in other states.

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/jason-chaffetz-democrats-claim-they-want-election-security-they-really-want-to-secure-election-victories

Well, then why is he the only one in the GOP blocking this?

He isn't. Don't let the NY Times misleading headline fool you.

Kevin McCarthy outlines why this is a ridiculous bill:

It’s Nancy Pelosi’s number one priority. In fact, the legislation is called “H.R. 1.” Here’s what it would do:

First: the bill sends your taxpayer dollars to fund political campaigns. Not to build roads or bridges but to add 600 percent of taxpayer money to every small dollar donated by Americans. So let’s say Mary from Michigan donates $200 to her preferred candidate. Well, now you—the taxpayer—have just chipped in another 1,200 bucks.

Second: H.R. 1 would legalize voting for convicted felons all over the country…even if they were convicted of election fraud. Does that make sense to you? Not only is this dangerous…it’s unconstitutional.

Third: H.R. 1 would weaken the security of our elections and make it harder to protect against voter fraud. Here’s how: It would automatically register voters from DMV and other government databases. Voting is a right, not a mandate. In most cases, this legislation would actually prevent officials from removing ineligible voters from the rolls and would make it much more difficult to verify the accuracy of voter information. So future voters might be underage or dead or illegal immigrants, or registered two or three times….Democrats just don’t care.

Democrats call H.R. 1 the “For the People Act.” But it’s really a “For the Politicians Act.” It’s not designed to protect your vote. It’s designed to put a thumb on the scale of every election in America and keep the swamp swampy.

https://www.republicanleader.gov/the-truth-behind-democrats-election-bill-h-r-1/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Perhaps because McConnell sees that this bill will do nothing to actually make our elections more secure.

Under the provisions of H.R. 1, all jurisdictions are compelled to use no-fault absentee ballots, which can be conveniently filled out and submitted from home. While convenient, they are hardly secure. They have given rise to a practice called ballot harvesting, in which activists track down voters, "help" them fill out their ballots, and then offer to submit them.

The breakdown in the chain of custody for such ballots enabled a North Carolina campaign operative to "lose" hundreds of ballots in the 2018 midterm elections. The same practice, which was illegal in North Carolina, is now legal in California, where late ballots submitted by harvesters broke inexplicably for Democrats and reversed election night outcomes.

How can the nationwide imposition of no-fault absentee ballots possibly be construed as an election security measure? Given the proven willingness of the Russian government to meddle in our elections, is it beyond the realm of possibility that those activists coming to collect your ballot could be paid by a foreign power?

Another provision essentially nullifies voter identification (ID) laws, which Democrats believe depress Democratic turnout in elections. If H.R. 1 becomes law, voters could bypass the ID requirement by simply signing a statement affirming that they are who they claim to be.

Once again, this provision has absolutely no relevance to election security. In fact, it makes elections less secure.

The bypassing of voter ID laws becomes even more concerning when you read what Democrats want to do about voter list maintenance. Their solution to outdated voter rolls is to prohibit states from comparing their voter rolls to the National Change of Address Database or to the databases of other states.

With this provision, voter identities used to vote in multiple states are less likely to be exposed. Now foreign powers could exploit our elections by simply getting people to use voter IDs that are valid in one state to vote in other states.

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/jason-chaffetz-democrats-claim-they-want-election-security-they-really-want-to-secure-election-victories

Well, then why is he the only one in the GOP blocking this?

He isn't. Don't let the NY Times misleading headline fool you.

Kevin McCarthy outlines why this is a ridiculous bill:

It’s Nancy Pelosi’s number one priority. In fact, the legislation is called “H.R. 1.” Here’s what it would do:

First: the bill sends your taxpayer dollars to fund political campaigns. Not to build roads or bridges but to add 600 percent of taxpayer money to every small dollar donated by Americans. So let’s say Mary from Michigan donates $200 to her preferred candidate. Well, now you—the taxpayer—have just chipped in another 1,200 bucks.

Second: H.R. 1 would legalize voting for convicted felons all over the country…even if they were convicted of election fraud. Does that make sense to you? Not only is this dangerous…it’s unconstitutional.

Third: H.R. 1 would weaken the security of our elections and make it harder to protect against voter fraud. Here’s how: It would automatically register voters from DMV and other government databases. Voting is a right, not a mandate. In most cases, this legislation would actually prevent officials from removing ineligible voters from the rolls and would make it much more difficult to verify the accuracy of voter information. So future voters might be underage or dead or illegal immigrants, or registered two or three times….Democrats just don’t care.

Democrats call H.R. 1 the “For the People Act.” But it’s really a “For the Politicians Act.” It’s not designed to protect your vote. It’s designed to put a thumb on the scale of every election in America and keep the swamp swampy.

https://www.republicanleader.gov/the-truth-behind-democrats-election-bill-h-r-1/

The first bullet relates to Citizens United and attempts to counter the fact that corporations and large donors have a disproportionate voice in poitics via the money they throw around. I would disagree with the proposed approach in the bill but ultimately Citizens United needs to be reversed. I would suggest they should instead put serious restrictions on the sources of funding, strictly restrict contributions to individuals only, get rid of PACs, SuperPACs, prohibit any political spending outside of narrow and well defined channels with very serious penalties (felony, prison time, major fines) for any departures. We need a serious rollback on campaign finance.

But again, why don't the Republicans propose an amendment to that part of the bill language instead of blocking it?

As for the other two points I think they are extremely disingenuous. With 2. it's not "unconstitutional" for felons to have the right to vote. Whether you like it or not, whether you agree or disagree there is no constitutional prohibition on felons voting. 3. They claim things like that dead people will get registered because of the motor voter act. Seriously? How many dead people apply for drivers licenses?

[Anonymous]

He is pure evil. And what is more depressing is that he gets reelected.

[Anonymous]

Robert Mueller: There was a “sweeping and systematic” Russian attack on our elections in 2016.

Bipartisan groups of legislators: Here are some bills that would help guard against the success of such attacks in 2020.

Mitch McConnell: Never mind.

-Bill Kristol

[Anonymous]

I would wager than when we get out of this era, Mitch McConnell is going to come across as the real evil mastermind of the nation's undoing. Trump is awful and a clown, but Mitch is pure, nasty, anti-democratic and anti-constitutional partisanship.