“It is not
the coronavirus pandemic, although 547,000 of us have died of Covid-19, and a
study today suggested that
we could have avoided nearly 400,000 deaths if we had adopted masks and social
distancing early on. It is not the coronavirus even though [yesterday] President
Joe Biden noted that we will reach 100 million vaccinations tomorrow and
that he aims to reach 200 million vaccines by his 100th day in office….
“It is not
the situation on our southern border, where a surge of migrants apparently
matches the seasonal pattern of people trying to make it into the United
States….
“It is not
the economy, although the U.S. Treasury said today it
had issued 37 million payments this week, worth $83 billion, from the $1.9
trillion American Rescue Plan....
“The story [yesterday]—and
always—is the story of American democracy.
“[Last
night],
Governor Brian Kemp of Georgia signed a 95-page law designed to suppress the
vote in the state where voters chose two Democratic senators in 2020, making it
possible for Democrats to enact their agenda. Among other things, the new law
strips power from the Republican secretary of state who stood up to Trump’s
demand that he change the 2020 voting results. The law also makes it a crime to
give water or food to people waiting in line to vote.
“The Georgia
law is eye-popping, but it is only one of more than 250 measures in 43 states
designed to keep Republicans in power no matter what voters want.
“This is the
only story from [yesterday] because it is
the only story historians will note from this era: Did Americans defend their
democracy or did they fall to oligarchy?
“The answer
to this question right now depends on the Senate filibuster. Democrats are
trying to fight state laws suppressing the vote with a federal law called the
For the People Act, which protects voting, ends partisan gerrymandering, and
keeps dark money out of elections.
“The For the
People Act, passed by the House of Representatives, is now going to the Senate.
There, Republicans will try to kill it with the filibuster, which enables an
entrenched minority to stop popular legislation by threatening to hold the
floor talking so that the Senate cannot vote. If Republicans block this
measure, the extraordinary state laws designed to guarantee that “Democrats can
never win another election will stay in effect, and America as a whole will
look much like the Jim Crow South, with democracy replaced by a one-party
state. Democrats are talking about reforming the filibuster to keep Republicans
from blocking the For the People Act.
“They have
been reluctant to get rid of the filibuster, but today President
Joe Biden suggested he would be open to changing the rule that permits
Republicans to stop legislation by simply indicating opposition. Republicans
are abusing the filibuster, he says, and he indicated he would be open to its
reform.
“The story [yesterday] is
not about coronavirus vaccines, or border solutions, or economic recovery,
because all of those things depended on the election of Joe Biden. If the
Republicans get their way, no matter how popular Democrats are, they will never
again get to direct the government”—Heather Cox Richardson
—-
Notes:
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