Warning: The Texas legislature is in session.
We know they’re up to no good. The question is how much harm can they do and how much attention do we need to give it.
A lot. The Republicans who control Texas government think we are invisible. They pretend not to see us, not to hear us, and they absolutely do not respect or represent us.
The time to get their attention is now. We must make our voices heard!
The current Texas congress has three apparent legislative priorities:
- To reduce voter turnout
- To enhance gun rights
- To make abortion illegal with criminal penalties
They are currently considering restricting voting rights. They must do this to continue to win in Texas and in 43 other states. Senate Bill 7 has passed the Senate and has been sent to the House. If passed, it will gut county elections officials’ ability to make voting easier in their counties. This bill makes it harder to vote by mail, it will reduce early voting options, make lines longer by limiting the number of voting machines, would require voters with disabilities to submit a note from their doctor certifying the disability to vote by mail, allows untrained poll watchers to record video of voters during the voting process (votes are private, and no one should be able to record you while you vote) and imposes a myriad of additional restrictions.
The House Elections Committee has passed HB 6, which follows Senate Bill 7’s lead under the guise of “standardizing” our elections. House Bill 6 was co-written by our Representative Reggie Smith. HB 6 —
- Seeks to add criminal penalties to many parts of the Election Code and foster voter purges
- Could potentially inhibit political parties, candidates and civic organizations from sending our voters key voting resources, such as mail ballot applications
- Authorizes the Attorney General to investigate and prosecute people for voting mistakes and confusion
- Sets up barriers to voting by mail
- would force elections officials to allow disruptive poll watchers in polling places — a move that could easily foster discriminatory voter intimidation.
If we speak up loud enough, there’s a chance we can stop these bills from going through.
Contact Sen. Drew Springer, (512) 463-0130 right now to demand he oppose SB 7 and defend our voting rights.
Contact Rep. Reggie Smith, (512) 463-0297 right now to demand he oppose HB 6 and defend our voting rights.
Voting should be easy and available to every qualified citizen. This is important and essential in a Democracy. In a recent tele-townhall by our US Rep. Pat Fallon, one of the first things he said was, “This is not a Democracy. This is a representative republic.” That’s how Republicans think. Throughout his fast talking tirade, his assumption was that everyone on the call was a far-right wing Republican. He and his Texas brothers have got another thought coming, if we speak up loud enough. Rep. Pat Fallon, (202) 225-6673, voted against HB 1, the “For the People Act of 2021”. Now it’s up to the US Senate. How do you suppose Cornyn and Cruz will vote? Oh, that’s right, this is not a Democracy.
Call them. Let them know how important the right to vote is, and demand they promote, not discourage, that right. We know they won’t listen to us, but they must hear us. We cannot be silent, because silence means consent. The Texas Democratic Party put together some very helpful Talking Points you may freely use.
In the words of a famous modern-day philosopher, express yourself!