Lakhota
Diamond Member
A House committee voted Tuesday to eliminate an independent election commission charged with helping states improve their voting systems as President Trump erroneously claims widespread voter fraud cost him the popular vote.
The party-line vote to terminate the Election Assistance Commission came less than two days after Trump vowed to set up a White House commission helmed by Vice President Mike Pence to pursue his accusations of election fraud.
The vote in the House Administration Committee underscored, once again, the political differences between the Republican president and the party's rank and file. The GOP majority on the committee eliminated the EAC, which was created by Congress after the 2000 Florida recount to upgrade voting technology and provide election-related information to federal entities, state officials and election administrators.
The bill was opposed by committee Democrats and voting rights groups, who argued that the federal agency plays a vital role in protecting elections from hacking and other types of interference.
"At a time when the vast majority of the country's voting machines are outdated and in need of replacement, and after an election in which foreign criminals already tried to hack state voter registration systems, eliminating the EAC poses a risky and irresponsible threat to our election infrastructure," said Wendy Weiser, the democracy program director at the Brennan Center for Justice.
More: House committee eliminates federal Election Assistance Commission
This is yet another tactic to undermine our election system that protects it from hacking and voter fraud.
The party-line vote to terminate the Election Assistance Commission came less than two days after Trump vowed to set up a White House commission helmed by Vice President Mike Pence to pursue his accusations of election fraud.
The vote in the House Administration Committee underscored, once again, the political differences between the Republican president and the party's rank and file. The GOP majority on the committee eliminated the EAC, which was created by Congress after the 2000 Florida recount to upgrade voting technology and provide election-related information to federal entities, state officials and election administrators.
The bill was opposed by committee Democrats and voting rights groups, who argued that the federal agency plays a vital role in protecting elections from hacking and other types of interference.
"At a time when the vast majority of the country's voting machines are outdated and in need of replacement, and after an election in which foreign criminals already tried to hack state voter registration systems, eliminating the EAC poses a risky and irresponsible threat to our election infrastructure," said Wendy Weiser, the democracy program director at the Brennan Center for Justice.
More: House committee eliminates federal Election Assistance Commission
This is yet another tactic to undermine our election system that protects it from hacking and voter fraud.
