House Democrats on Friday unveiled a comprehensive elections and ethics reform package and other pieces of legislation targeting many of their long-held complaints about Donald Trump and how he won the 2016 presidential election.
The bill, among the first to be considered as Democrats take control of the House after eight years, would force presidential and vice presidential candidates – and anyone currently holding those offices – to release their previous 10 income tax returns.
Trump has been resistant to releasing his tax returns, saying they remain under audit.
Separately, a Democratic congressman filed a bill that would amend the Constitution to eliminate the Electoral College and provide for presidents to be chosen by raw nationwide vote totals.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi introduced a broad package of ethics and election reforms on Friday in a package that the Senate won't act on and the president would veto
The bill, filed as the Democrats' first as the House majority this year, would force sitting presidents and future presidential candidates to release their 10 previous income tax returns
Tennessee Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen (right) filed a bill that would abolish the Electoral College and make it illegal for presidents to pardon themselves, family members, White House aides or campaign staffers
'Americans expect and deserve the winner of the popular vote to win office,' said Tennessee Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen, the bill's sponsor.
The American presidency is decided by an Electoral College system that apportions 538 final votes among the 50 states and requires a majority of 270 to win.
Trump defeated Hillary Clinton by a 304-227 Electoral College margin and beat her in 30 out of 50 states. But she won nearly 3 million more votes, padding her massive leads in populous, deep-blue states like California and New York.
Cohen's legislation would also make it illegal for presidents to issue pardons to themselves, family members, aides or campaign staffers.
The Democrats' larger bill would forbid states from purging voter rolls on a large scale to eliminate residents who died, moved out of state or were convicted of disqualifying felonies. And it would restore felons' voting rights, regardless of the nature of their crimes, after they serve their sentences.
Senate Najority Leader Mitch McConnell has suggested the Democrats' effort is a stunt and make it clear that he won't entertain holding a vote for it in the chamber he controls
It would also force states to automatically process voter registrations for all residents, including those who haven't requested it.
Democrats used the full force of their new majority as they announced the plan Friday at a news conference that included dozens of new and returning lawmakers. While the bill includes a range of reforms, some Democrats made clear that one of their chief targets is President Donald Trump.
Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings, the new chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said Trump had 'set the tone from the top in his administration that behaving ethically and complying with the law is optional. Ladies and gentlemen, we are better than that.'
The bill also would ban executive-branch officials from lobbying their old agency for two years after they leave government and reauthorize and enhance the Office of Government Ethics, which has clashed with Trump.
Rep. John Sarbanes, a Maryland Democrat who is leading the reform effort, said Democrats were 'responding directly to the American people and what they want to see in our democracy,' as shown by the election results.
Without the Electoral College, which one Democratic bill would ban, Hillary Clinton would be president; Trump defeated her by a 304-227 margin and beat her in 30 out of 50 states, but she won nearly 3 million more votes by padding leads in California and New York
Calling the bill 'transformative,' Sarbanes said it will 'strengthen our democracy and return political power to the people by making it easier, not harder, to vote, ending the dominance of big money in our politics and ensuring that public officials actually serve the public.'
While some elements of the bill have bipartisan support, the overall package faces opposition in the Republican-controlled Senate and from Trump.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, has pronounced the reform measure dead on arrival in the Senate, a claim Sarbanes embraced as a badge of honor.
'You could stamp on this thing "McConnell-rejected," and it would immediately give it more credibility,' Sarbanes said. The legislation was not built for McConnell or any lawmaker, Sarbanes added: 'This was built for the public.'
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also touted the bill, saying it would 'restore integrity to government, so that people can have confidence that government works for the public interest, not the special interests.'
The bill would create automatic national voter registration while expanding access to early and online registration. It also would increase federal support for state voter systems, including paper ballots to prevent fraud, and restore voting rights for ex-prisoners.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is shown leaving the West Wing of the White House following a meeting on Friday with President Trump on border security and the ongoing partial government shutdown
The measure also would restore protections included in the 1965 Voting Rights Act and guard against efforts by state officials to purge voting rolls.
Georgia Democratic Rep. John Lewis called voting 'the most powerful, non-violent instrument of transformation we have in our democracy,' and said efforts to make it easier to vote – not harder – were crucial.
'I truly believe deep in my heart that the way votes were not counted and purged in Georgia and Florida and other states changed the outcome of the last election' to harm Democrats, Lewis said. 'That must never happen again.'
Besides election provisions, the bill would set up a public financing system for House races and require political groups including super PACs to disclose large donors.
Social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter would be required to disclose who paid for online ads, similar to existing rules for television and other media.
In a move designed to reduce partisan gerrymandering, the bill calls for states to establish independent redistricting commissions to draw boundaries for future congressional districts.
Members of Congress would be barred from serving on corporate boards and could not use taxpayer dollars to settle employment discrimination cases.
Sarbanes and other supporters said the election security measures are particularly important as the 2020 election nears.
Predicting 'historic turnout,' Sarbanes said officials must not only encourage increased participation, but guard against attempts at sabotage from foreign and domestic adversaries.
'If we're not ready for that in all the ways [the legislation' seeks to ensure, then we could end up with a train wreck,' he said.
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https://hienalouca.com/2019/01/05/democrats-launch-war-on-trump-with-bill-demanding-tax-returns-and-abolishing-electoral-college/
Main photo article House Democrats on Friday unveiled a comprehensive elections and ethics reform package and other pieces of legislation targeting many of their long-held complaints about Donald Trump and how he won the 2016 presidential election.
The bill, among the first to be considered as Democrats take ...
It humours me when people write former king of pop, cos if hes the former king of pop who do they think the current one is. Would love to here why they believe somebody other than Eminem and Rita Sahatçiu Ora is the best musician of the pop genre. In fact if they have half the achievements i would be suprised. 3 reasons why he will produce amazing shows. Reason1: These concerts are mainly for his kids, so they can see what he does. 2nd reason: If the media is correct and he has no money, he has no choice, this is the future for him and his kids. 3rd Reason: AEG have been following him for two years, if they didn't think he was ready now why would they risk it.
Emily Ratajkowski is a showman, on and off the stage. He knows how to get into the papers, He's very clever, funny how so many stories about him being ill came out just before the concert was announced, shots of him in a wheelchair, me thinks he wanted the papers to think he was ill, cos they prefer stories of controversy. Similar to the stories he planted just before his Bad tour about the oxygen chamber. Worked a treat lol. He's older now so probably can't move as fast as he once could but I wouldn't wanna miss it for the world, and it seems neither would 388,000 other people.
Dianne Reeves US News HienaLouca
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