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President Biden’s fiery comments on voting rights did nothing to help him pass his legislation on the matter, and they aren’t going to do him any favors in the future. During a visit to Atlanta, Biden compared opponents of his proposal to George Wallace, Bull Connor, Jefferson Davis, three men known as segregationists who fought civil rights. Biden’s over-the-top rhetoric is something you rarely see in U.S. politics, and clearly it fell flat because the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act failed.
It’s really no surprise as the bill is aimed at fixing a problem that doesn’t exist, and most Americans don’t support its measures.
There was recently a study of 10 years of voter identification laws which the president is proposing we get rid of, the effect of which was that there was no negative impact on either registration or turnout for any demographic group in America.
The Census Bureau came out just late last year and reported that black turnout is actually bigger than white turnout, suggesting that there may not be any particular need here, was hardly Jim Crow, the way things now stand. Not only that, there are three things that the bill seeks to change that the public just doesn’t agree with.
On requiring a photo identification to vote. For example, the public supports that by a margin of 85 to 12, with all demographic groups supporting it.
The public who’s asked whether we should require that ballots be returned if they’re mailed in by election day, that goes in the bill, but the public supports keeping the rule by 82 to 18.
There’s also a requirement that states be allowed to purge their voting rolls of people who are dead or who have moved. The public supports that 88 to eight, but the president wants to change it.
So why all the fuss? The U.S. Constitution gives states control over voting, and the bill hands it to politically-appointed bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. If we saw that happening in another country, we’d all be shaking our heads.
And there’s one more reason for Biden’s divisive speech.
When the rest of the news is going bad, find something with which you fill the airwaves that pushes everything else off.
The real problem for Biden lies ahead because Republicans are going to remember the president’s comments when he’s looking for broad bipartisan support in the future.
