He noted that 17 states states had enacted 28 laws that make it harder to vote, with 400 bills pending. These are likely to have a disproportionate impact on people of colour. Citing the legalised segregation of America’s past, the president warned: “The 21st-century Jim Crow assault is real,...
With voting rights under siege from Republican-controlled state legislatures, Biden on Tuesday delivered his most forceful remarks yet on the issue, directly condemning his predecessor Donald Trump’s “big lie” about a stolen election.
But the president faced instant criticism from progressives for failing in his 20-minute speech to mention the filibuster, a Senate procedural rule that has thwarted efforts to safeguard democracy.
Joe Biden has made an impassioned attack on racist voting laws sweeping America, warning that “the 21st-century Jim Crow assault is real” and demanding of Republicans: “Have you no shame?”
President condemns Trump’s ‘big lie’ about a stolen election but fails to mention filibuster in 20-minute Philadelphia speech
The rules of the Texas house of representatives make it clear that those who flee the state could be arrested and brought back to Texas. House rules say that a majority of those present in the legislature can authorize the sergeant-at-arms to arrest the missing members. “Their attendance shall ...
That’s not really clear. The Texas constitution requires two-thirds of a legislative body to be present to conduct business. If there’s no quorum, the constitution authorizes the legislature to “compel” the attendance of missing members.
With the Democrats gone, Republicans are denied a quorum to pass their electoral reform package and Democrats in the state – riding a wave of praise for their walkout last time – have shown they will go to extremes to defend voting rights. But the move also guarantees a serious political face...
Fleeing the state to Washington allows the Texas Democrats to highlight the issue to a national audience, as well as dodge state law enforcement after Abbott said he would arrest them.
Democrats are determined to stop them. Earlier this summer, Democrats scuppered the reforms by walking out of the state house of representatives and denying the session a quorum. But now the Republican governor, Greg Abbott, has convened a special legislative session to pass the reforms. This sec...
Texas Republicans are intent on a radical overhaul of voting laws in the state in ways that many Democrats and civil rights experts say will directly affect voters of color in a state that is becoming more Democratic. The laws include outlawing 24-hour polling places, banning ballot drop boxes ...
The extreme move – which saw dozens of Democrats leave via planes and head to Washington DC – is the latest and wildest escalation in a fight over voting rights in the state and in America more broadly.
Texas Democratic lawmakers have fled their state in a desperate attempt to stop the Republican-run legislature from passing laws they say will suppress the vote of people of color.