We have to protect our voting rights (#4486)

      The republican party wants to diminish voting rights while the democratic party wants to expand voting rights. Let us see here, which is consistent with democracy and which isn't? Let me go ahead and speak the truth about who wants democracy to flourish and who wants democracy to die. We democrats are all for one person one vote. For all of us not just for some of us. While republicans are the ones who think that some are not to be allowed to vote and if they are it should be difficult for them to vote. I don't think I am embellishing one bit either. There are too many republicans in state houses run by republicans who have already restricted voting by passing laws and too many who are in the process of passing laws that restrict voting.
     So the necessity of a federal law that protects voting rights from all these republican legislatures who are intentionally denying voting rights is critical. The house has passed 2 voting rights bills that should be given every opportunity to become law. Even Joe Manchin is getting involved in the voting rights push as he sees the need to put all 50 states in a preclearance mode. Which on the face of it is well done because the original 9 states that were under the previous full preclearance paradigm, and 6 more states under a partial preclearance, are and were not the only states today that practice voter suppression.
     But more has to be done about gerrymandering and dark money. Plus making voting as easy as possible everywhere. We have a great task ahead of us on the democratic side and most of that task is getting Joe Manchin on the correct side of history. He is moving slowly our way but we need him to move much further if we are to stop the democracy crushing republicans and their agenda to steal power and our government. I want all the other policies that President Joe Biden is advocating for but if not at least we need to protect voting rights, otherwise 2022 may well be a disaster if our right to vote is hindered too often in too many places.