i rise today in support of the freedom to vote john r. lewis act. legislation that would protect the right to vote and strengthen our democracy. this week we heard president biden travel to the home of our late colleague john lewis, rally the nation around the need to protect and expand the right to vote. today we will pass this legislation in honor of john's name. but in order to honor our colleague, we must make good on our commitment. we must pass this legislation in both chambers without delay. we must also make clear as president biden did this week that there is nothing more important, no rules or procedures than the health of our democracy. there is far too much at stake to let tradition get in the way of real progress. i know from my work on the committee and the select committee investigating the attack on the u.s. capitol that the concerns about the future of the american system, the consent of the governed, with are well-founded. mr. speaker, every member of this body has a choice today and the world will remember where we stood. i am pro

the freedom to vote act and the john r. lewis voting rights advancement act. the latter of which critically also includes the native american voting rights act. together, mr. speaker, these bills will combat the wave of voter suppression laws we see enacted in states all across the country following the supreme court's decision in shelby county vs. holder, a decision that undermine the essential preclearance protections of the voting rights act. actions which accelerated at an alarming rate following the unprecedented voter turnout in the 2020 elections. rather than responding to increased voter participation with welcoming arms and pro-voter policies, states have instead been enacting laws that roll back access and aim to erect roadblocks to the ballot box. despite a 2020 election that election security experts said was the most secure in american history, according to the brennan center for justice, 19 states -- 19 states have enacted 34 restrictive voting laws in the last 12 months. the time, mr. speaker, to act is now. voter suppression and discrimination

support of h.r. 5746, the freedom to vote john r. lewis act. as president biden made clear in his speech in atlanta on tuesday, the time to act to protect the right to vote and the very essence of our democracy is now. and the bill we are considering today meets the gravity of this moment. h.r. 5746, mr. speaker, combines two -- two pieces of legislation vital to ensuring every american has free, equity and secure access to the ballot. the freedom to vote act and the john r. lewis voting rights advancement act. the latter of which critically also includes the native american voting rights act. together, mr. speaker, these bills will combat the wave of voter suppression laws we see enacted in states all across the country following the supreme court's decision in shelby county vs. holder, a decision that undermine the essential preclearance protections of the voting rights act. actions which accelerated at an alarming rate following the unprecedented voter turnout in the 2020 elections. rather than responding to increased voter participation wit

[video clip] >> a key part, one of them is the john r lewis voting rights act. they protect against discriminatory state voting laws. just a decade ago, -- when the senate passed that law just a decade ago, it passed 98 to --. why are they not supporting now? >> the supreme court decided that the conditions in 1965 are different than they are now. imagine that. we have had an african-american elected president of the united states, african-american elected to the vice presidency, an african-american elected to the senate in south carolina. if anyone cannot see circumstances have changed, they are not believing their lying eyes. the reality is, in louisiana, we have the highest percent of african-american officials in the nation. we have a white mayor of a predominantly black city and a white mayor of a predominantly white city. to argue we are still the safe -- to argue we are the same as we were in 1965 is to deny the facts. host: spencer overton, those comments by the senator yesterday. guest: the new law being proposed by congress that is in the senate does n

because we want to pass the john r. lewis voting rights advancement act. we want to pass the freedom to vote act. we know how much we have fought for. yesterday i was proud to join president biden and vice president harris in a place of profound civil rights and voting rights history. to advocate for the most foundational, sacred thing that i can think of. it makes me emotional. when i think of, as a black woman, i must stand here today before you asking us to do something that the past five presidents have done and four white republican presidents. re-authorize the voting rights act. so the real question you should ask yourself is what happened? what happened with this last president that got us to where we are today? that my colleagues will not stand up and pass the voting rights act. is it because we win? is it because we vote? that is you what should ask yourself. let me end by saying that the president made it very clear. where do you stand? do you stand with dr. martin luther king? or george walz? do you stand -- wallace? do you stand with john lewis

it's john r. lewis, voter advancement act, which will be, as i say, part of this package tomorrow. so because of the leadership of chuck schumer, john sarbanes, zoe lofgren, terri sewell, who has carried this legislation again and again, mr. butterfield, the distinguished chair of the judiciary committee, mr. nadler so, many people. we've had this debate over and over again in the house and in this congress. so when i hear people say oh, here comes a bill we've never seen. no, we voted in the house on this already. we had a vote in the house on this already. and this is as it comes back to us this time from the senate. yesterday, as i said, the president made it crystal clear that we had to get something done. again, mr. mcgovern is giving us that opportunity now. so i just want to say that -- why this is necessary. and it has been said in your committee this evening, but let me just be brief. because the night is getting on. since we passed the bill before, and in the course of the year, the republicans have continued their assault on voting rights in our country. nearly 400 bills

r lewis act. and deep gratitude to martin luther king iii, partners to call on americans to mark this year's mlk day and the true spirit of the holiday. by holding our lawmakers accountable to protect our voting rights. the mission of this coalition is simple. demand the senate and the president apply the same amount of urgency and pressure to deliver infrastructure as it will to deliver our democratic right to vote. last year we saw congress pass historic-- a historic infrastructure bill. we have long recognized that our country's roads and bridges are crumbling and in need of repair. but our democracy is crumbling, too. it also needs repair. that is why on dr. king's birthday this saturday, the kings joined thousands of marchers and scores of local partners in phoenix, arizona to march across a local bridge and deliver a message directly to arizona senator kyrsten sinema. from the podium voter after voter delivered a clear message, it is not enough to pay lip service to the legacy of dr. king an

because we want to pass the john r lewis voting rights advancement act. want to advance the freedom to vote acts. we know how much we have fought for. yesterday i was proud to join president biden and vice president harris in a place of profound civil rights and voting rights history. to advocate for the most foundational sacred thing that i can think of that makes me emotional. what i think of as a black woman, i can stand here today before you, asking us to do something the past five presidents have done and for white republican presidents, reauthorize the voting rights act too. so real question you should ask your self is a what happened? what happens with this last president that got us to where we are today? that my colleagues will not stand up and pass the voting rights act? is it because we win? is it because we vote? that is what you should ask yourself. let me end by saying the president made it very clear, where do you stand? do you stand with doctor martin luther king or george wallace? do you stand with john lewis? do you stand with abraham li

by calling on the senate and the president to pass the freedom to vote and john r lewis act. first, a note of deep gratitude to martin luther king iii, andrea waters king, the 180 partners working together to call on americans to march at this year's -- to mark this year's mlk day and the true spirit of the holiday, by holding our lawmakers accountable, to protect our voting rights. the mission of this coalition is simple. demand the senate and the president apply the same amount of urgency and pressure to deliver infrastructure as it will to deliver our democratic right to vote. last year resell congress pass a historic infrastructure bill. we have long recognized that our country's roads and bridges are crumbling and in need of repair. but our democracy is crumbling too. it also needs repair. that is why on dr. king's birthday this saturday, the kings join thousands of marchers and scores of local partners in phoenix, arizona, to march across a local bridge and deliver a message directly to arizona senator kyrsten sinema. from the podium, voter after voter delivered a clear

the freedom to vote, john r. lewis act will protect the vote of working families across the country. and only one archaic parliamentary measure prohibits all this progress. the filibuster does not increase deliberation in this chamber. it does not incentivize compromise. so while some claim that amending the filibuster will further the country's division, i disagree. right now it's only aiding and abetting obstructionists and opponents of progress. when it comes to voting on civil rights legislation. while the filibuster is not mentioned a single time in the constitution -- mr. schumer: may the senator pause for an interruption. thank you. i ask unanimous consent that the cloture vote on the motion to concur with at:00 p.m. -- be at 8:00 p.m. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. schumer: thank you. i appreciate the courtesy of my colleague. he had no choice but to do it at 6:30. mr. lujan:: so the importance of us being here today goes right in the face of us having this conversation

but, you know, at least one republican came out for the john r. lewis, senator from alaska calm out in favor of it. i think she's still there. i do believe there are others who would come out in favor. if we get some movement from the leadership. the fact of the matter is, i don't know mr. mcconnell is making statements to these -- for him to say there is some kind of power grab. is it a power grab to want the right to have your vote counted? that's not a power grab. you are trying to be a part of this great experiment that we call a democracy. and i would hope that senator mitch mcconnell would recognize that as such. he supported this kind of legislation in the past. he has made some calculations recently. but i would remind him that this could very well be a miscalculation on his part. >> what would you say to senator manchin and senator sinema tonight if you could be in these private discussions with them? >> i would say to both of them, remember the history of the country. remember what's gotten this country to be what it is today. we are not

i rise today in support of the freedom to vote john r. lewis act. legislation that would protect the right to vote and strengthen our democracy. this week we heard president biden travel to the home of our late colleague john lewis, rally the nation around the need to protect and expand the right to vote. today we will pass this legislation in honor of john's name. but in order to honor our colleague, we must make good on our commitment. we must pass this legislation in both chambers without delay. we must also make clear as president biden did this week that there is nothing more important, no rules or procedures than the health of our democracy. there is far too much at stake to let tradition get in the way of real progress. i know from my work on the committee and the select committee investigating the attack on the u.s. capitol that the concerns about the future of the american system, the consent of the governed, with are well-founded. mr. speaker, every member of this body has a choice today and the world will remember where we stood. i am pro

r lewis act. named after a man who spent nearly three decades of his remarkable life representing the people of georgia here in washington. it is the last great hope of our democracy. the idea of national standards on automatic and same-day voter registration. expanding food by mail, baselines for early voting days, preventing partisan gerrymandering and so much more. these are the ideas that are sound and will strengthen our democracy. not restrict assess to it. --access to it. congress has the duty to stand against these unlawful voter purges, to guard against the discriminatory state level in voter laws and to do anything less is not decent. i cannot think of a better way that congress could honor martin luther king jr. who called for justice, equality, and spoke about the urgency of now. then to act on these bills today. now. unless and until they do, we cannot back down. we will be talking about voting rights for a long time. we are not tired yet. thank you. [applause] >> thank you. our last

it's john r. lewis, voter advancement act, which will be, as i say, part of this package tomorrow. so because of the leadership of chuck schumer, john sarbanes, zoe lofgren, terri sewell, who has carried this legislation again and again, mr. butterfield, the distinguished chair of the judiciary committee, mr. nadler so, many people. we've had this debate over and over again in the house and in this congress. so when i hear people say oh, here comes a bill we've never seen. no, we voted in the house on this already. we had a vote in the house on this already. and this is as it comes back to us this time from the senate. yesterday, as i said, the president made it crystal clear that we had to get something done. again, mr. mcgovern is giving us that opportunity now. so i just want to say that -- why this is necessary. and it has been said in your committee this evening, but let me just be brief. because the night is getting on. since we passed the bill before, and in the course of the year, the republicans have continued their assault on voting rights in our country. nearly 400 bills

r. and, you know, in the past, the house ethics committee would handle investigations of members of congress. but the house ethics committee has recently become an ineffectual vehicle for any of this. and so they are really in a jam on how to handle this. >> yeah, and i mean, meanwhile, sort of looming over all of this, is to the extent the committee has used the compulsory process, it's resulted in federal criminal charges against steve bannon already for defying them. and the justice department is still sitting on the question of whether or not they're going to bring a federal criminal prosecution insurgency a former member of congress, trump's white house chief of staff, mark meadows, for also defying their compulsory process. they have to decide whether to use compulsory means against sitting members. but they're also still waiting to see whether compulsory means can even be enacted, can even be effectuated against people like bannon and meadows, who don't have that same special cate

for all those who don't support the freedom to vote john r. lewis act, they're obstructionists, and it will be on their hands because our communities and all of those who know what we have to lose, especially black and brown people have so much to lose, that they will react, but you won't keep us from voting. and the senators should be scared about that because we know we don't cheat when it comes to elections. we get out, we stand in line, noond matter how they try to suppress the vote, democrats and black and brown americans will vote. >> you've talked about the congressional black caucus as being the conscience of the congress on issues like this and so many others. i wonder if you can give us a little window into their strategic thinking right now. the way you have turned the question on its head the way you did just now and the way we played that sound of you speaking earlier last week, about the people opposing this are on the wrong side and they're the ones who need to worry about their future and how the politics of this will play out,

lewis act, a house-approved bill that combines the freedom to vote act and john r. lewis voting rights advancement act. majority leader chuck schumer has vowed to use a procedural workaround and change the senate rules to weaken the 60-vote threshold to pass the measure, despite opposition from republicans. but senators manchin and sinema would have to end their objections to a filibuster carve-out, which they indicated last week they would not. a vote on senate rules could come as early as wednesday. on monday, the federal holiday marking martin luther king jr. day, the family of king marched with thousands of others in washington, d.c., to demand manchin and sinema drop their support for the senate filibuster. this is martin luther king iii. >> senators sinema and manchin also say if the bill does not get bipartisan so court, it should not pass. well, the 14th amendment which granted citizenship to slaves in 1868 that did not have my partisans of work. should formally enslaved people been denied citizenship senator sinema? the 15th amendment that gave formally ens

r lewis act. and win, lose, or draw, members of the chamber were elected to debate and vote. win, lose, or draw, we are going to vote. especially on an issue as vital to the beating heart of our democracy as voting rights. mons to hold a debate on the floor, but we have been blocked each time by republicans. this is a step forward, but there is a lot of work to do. now, as we debate these measures, the senate will confront a critical question. shall the members of this chamber do what is necessary to pass these bills? the struggle for voting rights is one of the sagas in america. in 1789, and most days, you had to be a white, male protestant property owner to vote. that would leave out most of the people here. we have had a push for the right to vote. the right to vote is vital. both proponents and opponents know it. i am reading the biography of grants. the white southerners, the number one thing they wanted to prevent the freed slaves from doing was voting, because they knew it was power. we've

freedom to vote john r lewis will restore bedrock voting protections. established by the voting rights of 1965.he protections that have been eroded by the supreme court and an era where members of this body used to work together to solve the issues of our time. also set a federal baseline for voting standards to ensure every eligible voter has access to the ballot no matter where they live. and to protect the elections from graven politicians. voting rights should be bipartisan. used to be bipartisan. signing into law by george w. bush, a republican president. i know that my colleagues and i have worked in good faith this past year. this entire year. we have worked hard to try to find some common ground on this issue. let us bring these measures to the floor to debate. let's reason. let's deliberate. i had hoped our friends on the other side would have allowed us to have a debate on voting righh legislation. but until today, that is what they blocked three times in the senate. they blocked our ability to even have a debate on the bills. as a pastor, i u

the freedom to vote john lewis r. lewis act meets the challenges before us by establishing basic federal standards for our election, restoring and strengthening the voting rights act, countering the power of secret money in our politics and taking on new threats to our elections to ensure that every vote is properly counted. and, again, let me read from the constitution, from article 1, section 4, that clause empowers congress to make or alter rules for federal election at any time -- at any time. as senator kaine noted, that's the only time at any time -- that any time is used in the constitution, at any time. the word filibuster isn't in this document. the word cloture isn't in this document. but it was anticipated that congress could and should be involved in federal elections when necessary. what brought us to the point today? we're here in the midst of a concerted effort to stop people from exercising the most fundamental right in our democracy, because, as reverend warnock has put so well, some people don't want

the freedom to vote, john r. lewis act, meets the challenges before us by establishing basic federal standards for our elections, restoring and strengthening the voting rights act, countering the power of secret money in our politics, and taking on new threats to our elections to ensure that every vote is properly counted. and again let me read from the constitution, from article one, section four, that empowers congress to make or alter rules for federal elections at any time, at any time. as senator kaine noted that the only time that anytime is used in the constitution, at any time. the word filibuster isn't in this document. the word cloture is in in this document. but it was anticipated that congress could and should be enthralled involved in federal elections were necessary. we are here in the midst of a concerted effort to stop people from exercising the most fundamental right in our democracy. because as reverend warnock has put so well, some people don't want some people to vote. we are here because the

what does the freedom to act, the freedom to vote john r lewis act do? it sets up a basic federal standards to ensure that americans can participate in the franchise. it guarantees at least two weeks of early voting like voters now have in two thirds of states including red states. it provides for same-day registration like they had for 15 years in montana and to request a mail-in ballot without an excuse and ensures voters do not need to provide witness signatures or notice that they would have to hire on mail-in ballots because if you're in south carolina right now and you want to cast a mail-in ballot and you have covid or you're in the hospital, you have to have a witness sign off on that ballot. it also makes sure voters have access to drop boxes. the freedom to vote john r lewis act would also include much-needed protections against of those seeking to undermine our elections. senator blunt and i held a bipartisan hearing this last year and we found out that nearly one in three local election officials feel unsafe because of their jobs and nearly o

the combined freedom to vote john r. lewis act. the house passed it in a party line vote with a goal of passing it in the senate by monday, mlk day. so much for that. despite being intentionally undercut by a senator from his own party, after meeting with senate democrats, president biden acknowledged the challenges ahead, but said he would continue to fight election subversion. >> i hope we get it this time. the honest to god answer is i don't know. i know one thing. as long as i have a breath in me, as long as i'm in the white house, as long as i'm engaged at all, i'm going to be fighting to change the way these legislatures are moving. >> after president biden spoke, not to be outdone by his colleague, west virginia conservative democratic senator joe manchin said he too would not vote to weaken the filibuster. with me maria teresa kumar, and ari berman, senior reporter for mother jones and "give us the ballot : the modern voting rights in america." ari, you've been on a tear about this all day. i note the disrespect of senator

the freedom to vote john r. lewis act will restore bedrock voting protections established by the voting rights act of 19 1965, protections that have been eroded by the supreme court and are born from an era where members of this body used to work together to solve the tough issues of our time. we'll also set a federal baseline for voting standards to ensure every eligible voter has access to the ballot, no matter where they live, and to protect elections from subversion by craven politicians. voting rights should be bipartisan. used to be bipartisan. passed this body the last time 98-0, signed into law by george w. bush, a republican president. and i know that my colleagues and i have worked in good faith this past year, this entire year. we have worked hard to try and find some common ground with our republican friends on this issue i said to my colleagues, let us bring these measures to the floor to debate. let's raise them. let's deliberate. and i had hoped our friends on the other side would have allowed us

r lewis voting rights advancement. win, lose or draw, members of this chamber were elected to debate", when, lose or draw we are going to vote especially on an issue that is vital to the beating heart of our democracy and voting rights. democrats have tried for months to hold a voting rights debate on the floor but we've been blocked each time by public. this is a step forward are still a lot of. now as we debate these measures, the senate will confirm a critical question. shall the members of the chamber do what's necessary to pass the bills and movels them to the president's desk? the struggle for voting rights is one of america's 1789 in most states, property owner to vote most of the people had to push for the right to vote, from right to vote is vital in both the proponent and "no. i'm reading the biography, white southerners, the number one thing they wanted to prevent is to keep slaves from voting because they knew was power. we've had steps forward and plan steps back. unfortunately right now with the republica

the freedom to vote, john r. lewis act. now, this piece of legislation is not coming out of thin air. it's not a federal takeover. many of the reforms are intended to address long-held problems with access to the ballot box for many americans. it's also meant to address the gutting of the voting rights act the supreme court did in 2013, and the 440 voting restrictions bills across 49 states that have been introduced in recent years. many of those bills to restrict the right to vote have become law. in states like my own, in texas, in georgia, and so many other states. while other pieces have drafted a more recent threat to our democracy, including the counting of votes and the safety and security of election officials this legislation is necessary for us to save our democracy. and, yes, we've had setbacks in this fight. yesterday was another one. not enough of our republican colleagues in the senate were brave enough to stand up to president trump's lies and to vote for the same voting rights act that the senate had unanimo

r. lewis voting rights advancement and win, lose or draw, members of this chamber were elected to debate and to vote. win, lose or draw, we're going to vote, especially on an issue as vital to the beating heart of our democracy as voting rights. democrats have tried for months to hold the voting rights debate on the floor, but we've been blocked each time by republicans. this is a step forward, but there's still a lot of work to do. now as we debate these measures the senate is going to confront a critical question, shall the members of this chamber do what is necessary to pass these bills and move them to the president's desk? the struggle for voting rights is one of the sagas in america, 1789, in most states, you had to be a white male protestant property owner to vote. that might leave out most of the people here. and we have had an inexorable push for the right to vote. the right to vote is vital and the proponents and the opponents know it. i'm reading the biography of grant, the wh

. >> the freedom john r lewis act. now. >> so far there is no republican support for the bill in sight and democrats would need to change senate rules to allow the legislation to pass with a simple majority. house speaker nancy pelosi says senators should not hesitate if you really true want to honor doctor king don't dishonor him by using a congressional custom as an excuse. now, the senate is expected to take a voting rights legislation this week, but >> senator sinema and manchin have not changed their positions. reporting live in washington. i'm basil, john, thank you. basil. >> in the south bay volunteers honored doctor king by planting trees in your park in san jose. this event was put on by the group our city forest, more than 100 volunteers planted california sycamores earlier today. kron 4 talk to an organizer who says she believes doctor king would appreciate this day of volunteer service. >> he felt that more than the son of racism was the sin of being silent or doing nothing. and so i love how we have over

. >> and the freedom john r lewis act. now. >> so far there is no republican support for the bill in sight and democrats would need to change senate rules to allow the legislation to pass with a simple majority. house speaker nancy pelosi says senators should not hesitate if you really true. i want to honor doctor king. don't dishonor him by using a congressional custom as an excuse. >> now, the senate is expected to take up the voting rights legislation this week. but senators sinema and manchin have not changed their positions. reporting live in washington. i'm basil, john. >> so, basil, bottom line at this point is democratic leadership confident they can make this happen? get it done. >> well, it's hard to say whether they're confident they'll actually be able to get the legislation across the finish line. we do know that senate majority leader chuck schumer plans to bring it to the floor. but as i just said, when it comes to senator sinema and manchin, they are in support of voting rights legislation, but they are not

host: the freedom to vote act combined with the john r lewis act. describe what this larger piece of legislation would be to move this legislation. explain what the underlying larger bill would do. guest: this larger bill ensures national standards for federal elections to overrule many of the state voter suppression techniques we have seen recently. as you know, just in the past year -- let me put it this way. out of all the restrictions passed in the last decade, one third of them have been enacted just in the last year, so we have seen this uptick. the new law basically ensures national standards for federal elections to overrule many of those restrictive techniques. for example, the act guarantees early voting for 14 days during an election. ensure that voters can vote by mail without unnecessary barriers. ensures voters do not have to stand in line for more than 30 minutes. it also prohibits political gerrymandering and drawing electoral districts. also makes it more difficult to remove electoral officials for political reasons. because we cann

and it contains the john r. lewis voting rights advancement act to restore the protections guaranteed in the voting rights act of 1965. that's what it does. and mr. president, we are well within our rights as federal lawmakers to write and pass these bills. the relevant portion of article 1, section 4, clause 1 of the constitution, i have that here, clearly states the times, places, and manner of holding elections for senators and representatives shall be prescribed in each state by the legislature thereof, but the congress may at any time by law make or alter such regulations. the constitution specifically empowers us to pass these laws to protect voting. so enough of the specious argument i've heard so many times here on the senate floor that these bills somehow represent an unconstitutional power grab. far from it. the framers expressly empower the congress proprotect federal elections. now, all 50 members of the democratic majority, the democratic caucus, support these bills to protect our democracy. i'm dis

[applause] last week, as you may know, the house passed the freedom to vote john r lewis act that stopped voter suppression and election subversion and and partisan gerrymandering, and power the grassroots and and dark money in our politics. while the republicans in the senate blocked the bill yesterday, democrats will never relent in our fight for our democracy, and we will find a path forward. nothing less is at stake than our democracy. [applause] as president kennedy so rightly observed, we neglect the cities to the payroll for neglecting them, we neglect the nation. that is why for nine decades america's mayors and the united states congress has worked together to forge progress for the american people. so, as we face the many challenges and opportunities ahead, let us continue to strive working together to advance opportunities for every american and every zip code, to strengthen our democracy from city halls to capitol hill and build a brighter, better future for generations to come. because we know in congress, we know what you know. to get the job done, listening to our mayors. t

r. >> if he was trying to get votes, that was not the vote-getting speech. >> that was the you're going to hell speech. >> todd: this after mcconnell took to the senate floor torching the president for a deliberately divisive speech. >> how profoundly, profoundly unpresidential. i did not recognize the man at the podium yesterday. >> todd: and at the white house press briefing, it was damage control time. >> i know there has been a lot of claim of the offensive nature of the speech yesterday, which is hilarious on many levels given how many people sat silently over the last four years for the former president. >> todd: meanwhile, nancy pelosis she heard a clarion announcing house will vote today to clear the way for the senate to act, saying in a dear colleague letter, president biden made it crystal clear must sign legislation into law issue house democrats will take a step to send the freedom to vote john r. lewis act to the senate for consideration. what happens next in the 50/50 spli

for all those who don't support the freedom of the vote, john r lewis act, they are obstructionists and it will be on their hands. all of our communities who know what we have to lose, especially black and brown people, who have so much to lose. they will react but you will keep us from voting. the sensors should be scared about that. we get out and stand in line. no matter how they try to suppress us, black and brown americans will vote. >> you have talked about the congressional black caucus as being the conscious of the caucus on issues like this. can you give us a window into their strategic thinking. the way you have turned to that question on its head. talking about people who are opposing this. how they are the ones who need to worry about their futures in terms of how the politics of this will play out. i know you are thinking this 10 steps down the road. if things do fail tomorrow in the senate. and transects and cinema decide they want to go down in history for this reason. is there a way, under, over or around that wall? >> you are right. we have been strategizing, the congre

. >> the freedom john r lewis act. now. >> so far there is no republican support for the bill in sight and democrats would need to change senate rules to allow the legislation to pass with a simple majority. house speaker nancy pelosi says senators should not hesitate if you really true want to honor doctor king don't dis honor him by using a congressional custom as an excuse. >> now, the senate is expected to take a voting rights legislation this week. but senators sinema and manchin have not changed their positions. reporting live in washington. i'm basil, john. >> hey, basil, before you go democratic leadership, always try to sound very confident, but are they confident they can make it happen? >> o well, it seems at this point, it's it's not about confidence of making it happen. ,o we do know that a senate democratic leader chuck schumer will bring the legislation to the senate floor for this week, even though both senators a cinema and mansion have said previously that the even though the support voting rights leg

and we need to pass the john r. lewis voting rights advancement act to restore the voting rights act because of the supreme court decision, and restore precertification. and has been pointed out by my colleagues, this historically has been supported by both democrats and republicans. i think one republican vote to proceed to this, for those who are saying they're willing to debate this issue. today senators will have the opportunity to vote to be on the right side of history. the senate filibuster prevented the passage of civil rights legislation to reverse the jim-crow laws until finally in 1964 the filibuster ended, and the senate voted. by invoke -- invoking cloture wn vote now to protect voting rights amendments. we can do it now by passing cloture and be on the right side of history. if cloture is denied, we'll have the opportunity to restore the senate to its best traditions, to debate and vote, to require those who want to use rule 19 -- and rule 19 is our filibuster rule -- to actually be on the floor and de

r. you know, in the past, the house ethics committee would handle investigations of members of congress. but the house ethics committee has recently become an ineffectual vehicle for any of this. and so they are really in the jam on how to handle this. >> yeah, and meanwhile sort of looming all over, this is to the extent that the committee has used the compulsory process. it has resulted in federal -- for defying them. and the justice department is still sitting on the reaction of whether or not they're going to bring in federal criminal prosecution against a former member of congress, mark meadows, for also defying their compulsory process. so they have to decide whether to use compulsory means against sitting members. but they are also still waiting to see whether compulsory can even be inactive, can even be effectuated against people like bannon and meadows we don't have that same special category of being serving members. >> rachel, can we rewind the tape, just to the spot where you

the freedom to vote john r. lewis act. this bill represents the first real opportunity to secure the freedom to vote since the united states supreme court gutted the voting rights act nearly a decade ago. and the senate must pass this bill now. you know, it was more than 55 years ago that men, women, and children marched from selma to montgomery to demand the -- when they arrived at the state capitol in alabama, dr. king decried what he called normalcy. the normalcy, the complacency that was denying people the freedom to vote. as dr. king said, the only normalcy he would accept is the normalcy that recognizes the dignity and worth of all god's children. today we must not be complacent or complicit. we must not give up, and we must not give in. to truly honor the legacy of the man we celebrate today, we must continue to fight for the freedom to vote, for freedom for all. thank you all. may god bless you and make god bless america. have a good morning. >> vice president kamala harris there at the white house on this dr. mart

. >> the freedom john r lewis act. now. >> so far there is no republican support for the bill in sight and democrats would need to change senate rules to allow the legislation to pass with a simple majority. house speaker nancy pelosi says senators should not hesitate if you really true. >> want to honor doctor king don't dishonor him by using a congressional custom. >> as an excuse, the senate is expected to take a voting rights legislation this week. but senator sinema and manchin have not changed their positions reporting in washington. i'm basil, john. >> in the bay area today, volunteers honor doctor king by planting trees and helier park and this event was put on by the group. our city florist, more than 100 volunteers planted california sycamores today earlier 4 talk to an organizer who says she believes doctor king would appreciate this day of volunteer service. >> he felt that more than the son of racism was the sin of being silent or doing nothing. and so i love how we have over 100 volunteers who came today

. >> the freedom john r lewis act. now. >> so far there is no republican support for the bill in sight and democrats would need to change senate rules to allow the legislation to pass with a simple majority. house speaker nancy pelosi says senators should not hesitate if you really true. >> want to honor doctor king don't dishonor him by using a congressional custom. >> as an excuse, the senate is expected to take a voting rights legislation this week. but senator sinema and manchin have not changed their positions reporting in washington. i'm basil, john. >> the los angeles zoo celebrated betty white's birthday with a beautiful new garden in her honor. white was a renowned a lover of animals. the zoo created a special white rose memorial garden where fans can remember the actress with personal messages and drawings. it's located in the allen ludden plaza which was named after her late husband. the legendary actress died last month at the age of 99. there is also a self guided betty's la zoo tour featuring several stop

r. that vote also failed with senator joe manchin west virginia and kyrsten sinema affairs on voting to keep the filibuster intact. they voted along with every republican. up next to look back as senators debated the voting rights bill and proposed changes to senate rules. >> thank you, madam president. congress inid our elections is vital to self-governance. and voting is a fundamental right. this is something that democrats and republicans could agree on. article one section four of the constitution states that quote, times, places and manners,, unquote, congressional elections quote shall be prescribed by the states. over the last year my democratic colleagues have introduced and try to pass several versions of what they call r the voting rigs legislation. before the people act and for the freedom to vote act. but these wholesome titlesle seriously are misleading. the bills are partisan, are partisan power grabs thatnm give the federal government unprecedented power over our elections

the freedom to vote, john r. lewis act. this bill, represents the first real opportunity to secure the freedom to vote since the united states supreme court gutted the voting rights act nearly a decade ago. and the senate must pass this bill now. >> the biden administration had hoped to have a senate vote on voting rights in time for today's martin luther king junior holiday. from the sounds of it, they are not ready to give up. despite all signs pointing to failure. we want to welcome tonight simone sanders, former chief spokes person to vice president harris. she will be hosting a show here on cbs nbc. the choice on peacock. and tim miller, contributor to the bulwark. -- welcome to both you, good evening. simone, welcome to the nbc family. going to be fun to be with you on a regular basis. simone, i think it is fair to say that this may be the most meaningful mlk junior holiday since the holiday has existed. because it is the first time since this holiday has existed, that we are in an active and current fight for voting

r. cheney was totally right. it is totally obvious once you laid down what pence said. all that extra verbiage that pence added alongside the various austere, almost exactly unchanged language every time the vice president had done the speech. figured out that vice president pence's office much have work with these other parliamentarians ahead of time to head off this stunt. to head off this part of the plot. to head off what republicans were trying to do something in these forged electoral college votes. which they did in fact, not just fell out and keep, they filled them out, sign them, and sent them into the national archives and to the united states senate as if they were real. and since then, we have learned more about what has happened. particularly in recent days. however, we still don't know who did it. it is at least seven states, republicans clearly were working from some sort of played document. all seven documents have the same font, same spacing, same basic language to creat

r. whether we get down on our knees in prayer or we stand tall, let's continue the work of this democracy so that freedom and justice does roll down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream. forgive me, my colleagues, for speaking well beyond my time, and i apologize if i dem on straichted too much emotion. thank you, president. the presiding officer: the senator from kansas. mr. moran: thank you, madam president. confidence in our elections is vital to self-governance, and voting is a fundamental right. this is something that democrats and republicans can agree on. article 1, section 4 of the constitution states that, quote, times, places, and manners, unquote, of congressional elections, quote, shall be proscribed by the states. over the last year, my democratic colleagues have introduced and tried to pass several versions of what they call the voting rights legislation. the for the people actened a the for the freedom to vote act. but these wholesome titles seriously are misl

r. in the meantime, this all took place, alicia, with the services from the synagogue being broadcast on facebook live this morning. you could hear that suspect inside starting to make his demands known before that feed was cut off. this is now involving multiple agencies who are here on the scene. we know that atf, fbi is here as well. colleyville police still the lead agency at this point in time, but the governor has sent state authorities to assist as needed. we heard from jen psaki at the white house saying president biden has been briefed on this ongoing matter. we heard from the prime minister bennett in israel saying he's highly aware of the ongoing situation that is currently playing out as we speak about a quarter mile from where i'm standing. so as it stands right now, a very tense situation. we believe hostages are still being held inside the synagogue right now, however, that man that is believed to be armed is in talks with federal authorities, alicia. >> jonathan, what hav

r. in the meantime, this all took place, alicia, with the services from the synagogue being broadcast on facebook live this morning. you could hear that suspect inside starting to make his demands known before that feed was cut off. this is now involving multiple agencies who are here on the scene. we know that atf, fbi is here as well. colleyville police still the lead agency at this point in time, but the governor has sent state authorities to assist as needed. we heard from jen psaki at the white house saying president biden has been briefed on this ongoing matter. we heard from the prime minister bennett in israel saying he's highly aware of the ongoing situation that is currently playing out as we speak about a quarter mile from where i'm standing. so as it stands right now, a very stenson situation. we believe hostages are still being held inside the synagogue right now, however, that man that is believed to be armed is in talks with federal authorities, alicia. >> jonathan, what h