Raleigh, N.C. – North Carolina's 2018 voter ID law is on trial this week (read a summary of the law here).
Lawyers for the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, a left-wing legal organization, have attempted to characterize the law and those who backed it as "racist," even though the law was sponsored by an African American Democrat.
They've also alleged, improbably, that the bill's backers, including an African American Democrat, sought to "entrench" Republican majorities through a partisan legislative process.
The lawyers' attempts to redefine history are undercut by quotes from key Democratic legislators who spoke favorably of the process during debate over the bill in late 2018.
It would seem to defy logic that anyone, let alone Democratic legislators, would praise an insidious and "racist" Republican effort:
-
Democratic Sen. Floyd McKissick: “I’d just like to say thank you to [Republican senators] for their work on the bill and for being open and inclusive in listening to us on the other side of the aisle in trying to come up with something that is reasonable in terms of its approach. So I want to thank you for that effort.”
-
Democratic Sen. Erica Smith: “I want to thank the bill sponsors for the hard work that you’ve been doing in negotiating and accepting many of the amendments that have been placed before you.”
-
Democratic Sen. Terry Van Duyn: “I want to very sincerely acknowledge the work that [Republican senators] did, particularly around amendments that have been brought to you by my colleagues, my Democratic colleagues. I’m very grateful for every one that you’ve incorporated.
-
Democratic Sen. Mike Woodard: “We appreciate the Republican caucus amending the bill to allow issuance of voter IDs during early voting.”
-
Democratic Rep. Pricey Harrison: “This bill is a much better bill than the bill that left this chamber in 2013.”
Be the first to comment
Sign in with