Obama to call for Voting Rights Act restoration on law’s anniversary
*There’s momentum in the President’s planned call for restoration of the VRA. It’s the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act and yesterday’s voter ID victory in Texas put voting rights in the moment’s spotlight. It’s good momentum for civil rights advocates, after Shelby v Holder stripped Section 5 of the VRA in 2013 all hope for voting rights fell on Section 2. That’s the part of the VRA that was used to stop voter ID in Texas. It’s a trudge, but it seems to be working. VL
By Jordan Fabian, The Hill
President Obama will call for the restoration of the Voting Rights Act on its 50th anniversary Thursday, the White House said.
Obama will hold a teleconference to commemorate the landmark legislation and call for its renewal, following a 2013 Supreme Court ruling that voided one of its central provisions.
[pullquote][tweet_dis]Democrats in Congress want legislation to provide new voter protections, but GOP leaders haveslammed the brakes on new voting rights bills.[/tweet_dis] [/pullquote]Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), who rose to prominence in the 1960s as a civil rights leader, will participate.
The event will allow Obama to draw a sharp contrast with Republicans, many of whom argue some provisions of the 1965 law went too far. It will take place on the same day as the first GOP presidential primary debate.
Asked about the timing of the event, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said that “one person’s irony is another person’s serendipity.”
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[Photo by The White House/Flickr]
