rich 1.0 Action Network https://actionnetwork.org <link href='https://actionnetwork.org/css/style-embed-v3.css' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css' /><script src='https://actionnetwork.org/widgets/v6/letter/reject-the-dangerous-expansion-of-poll-watcher-powers?format=js&source=widget'></script><div id='can-letter-area-reject-the-dangerous-expansion-of-poll-watcher-powers' style='width: 100%'><!-- this div is the target for our HTML insertion --></div> Common Cause Texas https://actionnetwork.org/groups/common-cause-texas https://actionnetwork.org//images/generic_facebook.jpg “To try to perpetuate your power through limiting access to the polling place is not only morally bankrupt, I think it’s a losing proposition over time” - Speaker Joe Straus to Texas Tribune Join us in calling on Speaker Dade Phelan to keep discriminatory bills like House Bill 6 and Senate Bill 7 off the House floor. We applaud Speaker Phelan for taking a courageous stand after the Capitol insurrection, making clear in an interview with the Texas Tribune that he did not believe the 2020 election was stolen: Evan Smith: Do you believe the election was stolen? Speaker Dade Phelan: "The public voted. The votes were tallied. The votes were verified. There were lawsuits in state court. There are lawsuits in federal court. And the process worked its way through the system and we are where we are. The President himself said it’s now time for a peaceful transfer of power." Speaker Phelan rightly rejected the false narrative of our elections being rife with fraud, a narrative many now refer to as the "Big Lie." It is a false narrative many politicians keep perpetuating to justify the need for bills like SB7 and HB6 that will disenfranchise voters and harm our democracy. With so many serious problems that Texans need addressed -- fixing our power grid, COVID-related issues, budget shortfalls, and on and on-- the People's House must keep focus on solving these very real, very serious problems that impact millions of Texans. SB7 and HB6, on the other hand, are discriminatory, shameful pieces of legislation that harken back to the Jim Crow era. They will make it harder for Black and brown communities to vote. They will make it harder for people with disabilities to vote. They will make it harder for rural Texans to vote. More so, these proposed laws will deepen division and sow seeds of distrust among our fellow Texans and harm our democracy. We’ve already seen the devastating impact of feeding unfounded division and distrust within our democracy with the insurrectionist attack on our nation’s Capitol, which Speaker Phelan rightly said, “should never happen again.” We strongly agree, and we trust the Speaker will do his part by keeping the People's House focused on serious pieces of legislation, and rejecting those that would, in the words of Former Speaker Joe Straus, "perpetuate your power through limiting access to the polling place." https://actionnetwork.org/letters/reject-the-dangerous-expansion-of-poll-watcher-powers