Sharpton to host 2016 Democratic hopefuls at racial justice forum.

[elleng]

http://www.politico.com/story/2015/12/al-sharpton-democratic-2016-challengers-forum-216673

[Eric J in MN]

1. Clinton campaign claims

Last edited Fri Dec 11, 2015, 03:28 PM - Edit history (1)

...she's "the only candidate to talk specifically about what she'd do on voting rights."

False.

From Bernie Sanders' presidential website:

Congress must restore the Voting Rights Act’s “pre-clearance” provision, which extended protections to minority voters in states where they were clearly needed. Then we must expand the Act’s scope so that every American, regardless of skin color or national origin, is able to vote freely.

I have introduced legislation to make Election Day a national holiday, but that’s just a start. We must make early voting an option for voters who work or study and need the flexibility to vote on evenings or weekends. We must make no-fault absentee ballots an option for all Americans.

Every American over 18 must be registered to vote automatically, so that students and working people can make their voices heard at the ballot box. We must put an end to discriminatory laws and the purging of minority-community names from voting rolls.

We need to make sure that there are sufficient polling places and poll workers to prevent long lines from forming at the polls anywhere. We need to fight dishonest practices that keep people from voting through deception or fear. We need to restore voting rights to people who have served their debt to society.

https://berniesanders.com/the-fight-for-voting-rights-is-our-fight-today/

[jkbRN]

2. He also introduced a bill

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/democracyday

HRC camp does this all the time

[HerbChestnut]

3. It's a common political tactic.

Make some kind of outrageous claim and immediately put your opponent on the defensive. Look what it did to Kerry in 2004.

[elleng]

4. WHY WE NEED A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO SECURE THE RIGHT TO VOTE

'Many Americans believe they have a constitutional right to vote, but the U.S. Constitution guarantees no such right explicitly. While the 14th Amendment provides some protection, it is not comprehensive and has left many Americans vulnerable to Republican efforts to restrict the right to vote:

In 2014, Republican legislators in 29 states introduced more than 80 bills to require a photo ID, make voter registration more difficult, reduce early voting opportunities, and make it harder for students to vote.
As a result, a 2014 report found that voter ID laws in 32 states stood to keep as many as 23 million Americans from successfully voting.
Millions of Americans who voted in the last election are at risk of being turned away from the polls because of restrictive voting laws that require a photo ID, eliminate early voting, and make it harder to register.

To address this voter suppression, progressive leaders in Congress introduced legislation that would amend the U.S. Constitution to explicitly guarantee the right to vote. The legislation’s text is simple and straightforward:

SECTION 1: Every citizen of the United States, who is of legal voting age, shall have the fundamental right to vote in any public election held in the jurisdiction in which the citizen resides.
SECTION 2: Congress shall have the power to enforce and implement this article by appropriate legislation.
Governor O’Malley believes that nothing is more important in our sacred democracy than the right to vote. As governor, he made it easier – not harder – for Marylanders to vote. He signed a bill restoring voting rights to more than 50,000 people with felony records, expanded early voting and allowed same-day registration. He even revolutionized Maryland’s voter registration process by creating an online system.

Passing a constitutional amendment that enshrines this fundamental right will give U.S. courts the clarity and authority they need to strike down Republican efforts to suppress the vote. The proposed amendment would set a high legal bar to defend against attempts to disenfranchise eligible voters, and empower Congress to enact strong electoral standards nationwide.
Amending the Constitution is hard, but voting shouldn’t be. Our current laws have failed to protect this fundamental right for too many people.

That’s why on the week of the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act…GOVERNOR O’MALLEY IS CALLING FOR A RIGHT-TO-VOTE AMENDMENT.'

https://martinomalley.com/the-latest/news/right-to-vote/

[jfern]

7. Killer Mike endorsed Bernie because of that

[bigtree]

10. 2016's Boldest Voting Rights Proposal Yet

Salon.com ‏@Salon
A Democratic presidential candidate just offered 2016’s boldest voting rights proposal yet http://slnm.us/I6RVl89

___In the crucial early primary state of South Carolina, Martin O’Malley marked the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act with an address to the bipartisan African-American professional group 20/20 Leaders of America, forcefully pushing back against Republican efforts to limit access to the voting booth.

O’Malley blasted the more than 80 bills introduced by Republicans in 29 states over the past year to take advantage of the newfound opportunity to reduce early voting opportunities and require new photo IDs restrictions.

“We know why they’re doing this: because Americans without a photo ID are disproportionately low-income, disabled, minority — and Democratic,” O’Malley told the gathered leaders.

Arguing that “many Americans don’t realize that the U.S. Constitution does not affirmatively guarantee the right to vote,” O’Malley called for a new amendment to “protect every citizen’s right to vote, once and for all.”

“Passing a constitutional amendment that enshrines that right will give U.S. courts the clarity they need to strike down Republican efforts to suppress the vote,” O’Malley argued today.

While governor of Maryland, O’Malley oversaw the creation of an online voter registration system and signed legislation allowing for same-day registration and expanding early voting...

read: http://www.salon.com/2015/08/04/a_democratic_presidential_candidate_just_offered_2016s_boldest_voting_rights_proposal_yet/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=socialflow


from the O'Malley campaign:

Aug 4 | Policy
Why we need a constitutional amendment to secure the right to vote

Many Americans believe they have a constitutional right to vote, but the U.S. Constitution guarantees no such right explicitly. While the 14th Amendment provides some protection, it is not comprehensive and has left many Americans vulnerable to Republican efforts to restrict the right to vote:

In 2014, Republican legislators in 29 states introduced more than 80 bills to require a photo ID, make voter registration more difficult, reduce early voting opportunities, and make it harder for students to vote.
As a result, a 2014 report found that voter ID laws in 32 states stood to keep as many as 23 million Americans from successfully voting.

Millions of Americans who voted in the last election are at risk of being turned away from the polls because of restrictive voting laws that require a photo ID, eliminate early voting, and make it harder to register.

To address this voter suppression, progressive leaders in Congress introduced legislation that would amend the U.S. Constitution to explicitly guarantee the right to vote. The legislation’s text is simple and straightforward:

SECTION 1: Every citizen of the United States, who is of legal voting age, shall have the fundamental right to vote in any public election held in the jurisdiction in which the citizen resides.
SECTION 2: Congress shall have the power to enforce and implement this article by appropriate legislation.

Governor O’Malley believes that nothing is more important in our sacred democracy than the right to vote. As governor, he made it easier – not harder – for Marylanders to vote. He signed a bill restoring voting rights to more than 50,000 people with felony records, expanded early voting and allowed same-day registration. He even revolutionized Maryland’s voter registration process by creating an online system.

Passing a constitutional amendment that enshrines this fundamental right will give U.S. courts the clarity and authority they need to strike down Republican efforts to suppress the vote. The proposed amendment would set a high legal bar to defend against attempts to disenfranchise eligible voters, and empower Congress to enact strong electoral standards nationwide.

Amending the Constitution is hard, but voting shouldn’t be. Our current laws have failed to protect this fundamental right for too many people.

That’s why on the week of the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act…GOVERNOR O’MALLEY IS CALLING FOR A RIGHT-TO-VOTE AMENDMENT.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1251494760

[jwirr]

5. Is there a date? Time?

[Eric J in MN]

8. In January, but no exact date-or-time.

We also don't know if anyone will broadcast it.

[jwirr]

9. Thank you.

[askew]

6. That's too bad. I'd rather see a neutral moderator here.

Sharpton has kissed Hillary's ass too much for me to take him seriously as an impartial moderator.