WASHINGTON (AP) – A New Executive Order from President Joe Biden directs federal agencies to take a series of steps to promote access to voting, a step that comes when Congressional Democrats push for sweeping voting and election law to counter attempts to limit voting rights
His plan was announced at a recorded address on the 56th anniversary of “Bloody Sunday,” the 1965 incident in which about 600 civil rights activists were brutally beaten by state forces while trying to march for the right to vote in Selma, Alabama.
“Every eligible voter should be able to vote and make it count,” Biden said in his prepared remarks at Sunday’s Martin and Coretta King Unity Breakfast. ‘If you have the best ideas, you have nothing to hide. Let the people vote. “
Biden’s order contains some modest provisions. It directs federal agencies to expand access to voter registration and election information, calls on federal agency heads to come up with plans to give federal employees time to vote or volunteer as nonpartisan pollsters , and mandates a review of the government’s vote. gov website.
Democrats are seeking to bolster support for House Resolution 1, which affects virtually every aspect of the electoral process. It was approved on Wednesday by a vote near the party line, 220-210.
The bill on voting rights includes provisions to limit the partisan mandate of congressional districts, remove barriers to voting, and bring transparency to a dark campaign funding system that allows wealthy donors to anonymously fund political causes.
Democrats say the bill will help quell attempts at voter suppression, while Republicans have labeled the bill as unwelcome federal interference in the authority of states to hold their own elections.
The fate of the bill is far from certain in the closely divided Senate. Conservative groups have launched a $ 5 million campaign to try to convince moderate Senate Democrats to oppose changes to the rules needed to pass the measure.
With his executive order, Biden aims to put the spotlight on the topic and uses Bloody Sunday’s gloomy commemoration to defend the cause that much is at stake.
Bloody Sunday turned out to be a deliberate and shocking turning point in the civil rights movement that led to the passing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Likewise, Biden hopes the January 6 looting of the Capitol by a pro-Donald Trump gang will do. appear to be a clear call for Congress to take action to improve voter protection.
“In 2020 – with our democracy at stake – even in the midst of a pandemic – more Americans voted than ever before,” Biden said in his prepared remarks. “But instead of celebrating this powerful demonstration of votes, we saw an unprecedented uprising in our Capitol and a brutal attack on our democracy on January 6. An unprecedented attempt to ignore, undermine and undo the will of the people. “
Biden’s comments also pay tribute to the late civil rights giants Rev. CT Vivian, Rev. Joseph Lowery and Rep. John Lewis. All played critical roles in the 1965 organizing efforts in Selma, and all died in the past year.