Post by LFC on Jun 27, 2021 14:41:04 GMT
The DOJ used Republicans' words and deeds against them in the Georgia voter suppression case.
In April last year, Georgia House Speaker David Ralston (R), criticized a move from Georgia’s secretary of state to send absentee ballot applications to every eligible voter in Georgia in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. “The president said it best, this will be extremely devastating to Republicans and conservatives in Georgia,” Ralston said.
“This will certainly drive up turnout,” he complained later of the secretary of state’s decision.
Civil rights attorneys took note. One of them flagged the interview on Twitter, writing that Ralston was “admitting high voter turnout is bad for Republicans.”
A little more than a year later, the federal government sued Georgia over a new law, SB 202, that put legislative muscle behind Ralston’s gripes about absentee ballots, including by prohibiting elections officials from sending Georgians unsolicited absentee ballot applications. The Justice Department alleged Friday that the changes not only disproportionately impacted Black voters, but also that this outcome was the intent of Georgia legislators.
The lawsuit introduced Ralston’s words to the court record, quoting him saying that sending absentee ballot applications to all voters would be devastating for Republicans. And the civil rights attorney who flagged his comments on Twitter a year ago stood behind Attorney General Merrick Garland as he announced the legal action. That attorney, Vanita Gupta, is now the associate attorney general.
The words and intent of Ralston and others involved with enacting the new voting law, SB 202, will be key in the Justice Department’s efforts to show that the law purposefully discriminates against Black voters.
“This will certainly drive up turnout,” he complained later of the secretary of state’s decision.
Civil rights attorneys took note. One of them flagged the interview on Twitter, writing that Ralston was “admitting high voter turnout is bad for Republicans.”
A little more than a year later, the federal government sued Georgia over a new law, SB 202, that put legislative muscle behind Ralston’s gripes about absentee ballots, including by prohibiting elections officials from sending Georgians unsolicited absentee ballot applications. The Justice Department alleged Friday that the changes not only disproportionately impacted Black voters, but also that this outcome was the intent of Georgia legislators.
The lawsuit introduced Ralston’s words to the court record, quoting him saying that sending absentee ballot applications to all voters would be devastating for Republicans. And the civil rights attorney who flagged his comments on Twitter a year ago stood behind Attorney General Merrick Garland as he announced the legal action. That attorney, Vanita Gupta, is now the associate attorney general.
The words and intent of Ralston and others involved with enacting the new voting law, SB 202, will be key in the Justice Department’s efforts to show that the law purposefully discriminates against Black voters.
Much of the lawsuit focuses not on Republicans’ words, but on the facts that legislators allegedly knew at the time the bill was being debated — such as the fact that Black voters disproportionately relied on absentee voting in recent elections, and that Black voters who vote in-person are more likely to get stuck in long lines, both realities made more difficult by SB 202.
“The Georgia Legislature knew from debate within the General Assembly and witness testimony at hearings that SB 202 would harm Black voters, yet it rushed through a hasty process to pass SB 202 while relying on debunked and pretextual claims of voter fraud as a rationale,” the suit alleged.
The context of SB 202’s passage was also unavoidable — most notably, that it followed several unsuccessful efforts to overturn the 2020 election, legal efforts that “often included allegations focused on counties containing significant numbers of Black voters and other voters of color,” the federal government said.
“The Georgia Legislature knew from debate within the General Assembly and witness testimony at hearings that SB 202 would harm Black voters, yet it rushed through a hasty process to pass SB 202 while relying on debunked and pretextual claims of voter fraud as a rationale,” the suit alleged.
The context of SB 202’s passage was also unavoidable — most notably, that it followed several unsuccessful efforts to overturn the 2020 election, legal efforts that “often included allegations focused on counties containing significant numbers of Black voters and other voters of color,” the federal government said.