Biden: Texas voting bill is ‘assault on democracy’
US President Joe Biden has criticized a Texas bill adding new voting restrictions, calling it an “assault on democracy” and “wrong and un-American.”
A committee of state representatives and senators on Saturday finished drafting a bill that limits early hours to cast ballots, bans drive-through polling sites and places new requirements on voters.
The committee sent it to both Republican-led chambers for a simple majority vote expected sometime this weekend, with Republican Governor Greg Abbott indicating that he will sign the bill into law.
The move, which marks the latest attempt by Republicans to impose voting restrictions at the state level, comes in the wake of former president Donald Trump’s persistent and baseless claims that the November presidential election was stolen.
“It’s part of an assault on democracy that we’ve seen far too often this year—and often disproportionately targeting Black and Brown Americans,” Biden said in a statement. “It’s wrong and un-American. In the 21st century, we should be making it easier, not harder, for every eligible voter to vote.”
If approved and signed into law, the bill would prohibit election officials from sending absentee ballots to all voters, regardless of whether they had requested them.
Using tents, garages, mobile units or any temporary structure as a polling location would be banned too. In addition, the bill would further limit who could vote absentee and add new identification requirements for voting by mail.
Texas is the latest in a flurry of states that have seen Republicans push for more restrictive voting laws, which supporters often call “election integrity”.
Biden has been a critic of “election integrity” legislation, particularly new Georgia voting legislation, which he called 21st-century “Jim Crow.”
In his statement, the Democratic president called for Congress to take action on the “For the People Act,” which has passed the House amid GOP opposition.
That legislation would reform ballot access and campaign finance, in addition to requiring states to have two weeks of early voting, among other things.
“In the 21st century, we should be making it easier, not harder, for every eligible voter to vote,” Biden said Saturday. “I continue to call on all Americans, of every party and persuasion, to stand up for our democracy and protect the right to vote and the integrity of our elections.”
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