Tuesday, April 8, 2025

H. R. 22 - Silencing Americans Act

House Republicans are calling it the SAVE Act. SAVE stands for "Safeguard American Voter Eligibility". It will require proof of citizenship in order to register to vote. Sounds like a good idea. We can't have non-citizens voting.

But in reality it is a Project 2025-inspired voter suppression act. Here are a few facts about it.

·         Overnight, it would essentially end online and mail-in voter registration. 

·        Proof of citizenship doesn’t mean a simple driver’s license. It means a birth certificate or a passport – documents that tens of millions of citizens simply don’t have access to. 

·        Married people who’ve changed their names wouldn’t be able to register using their original birth certificates -- effectively disenfranchising millions of women. 

·        Trans and nonbinary people who’ve changed their names to reflect their gender identity would also face massive challenges to voting -- and the State Department’s ban on updating sex designations on passports (if upheld in court) would add to the difficulty of satisfying the bill’s proof of citizenship requirements.

·        The burdensome requirements would disproportionately impact voters of color, low-income voters, elder voters and younger voters. How many college students do you know who have a birth certificate stashed in their dorm room?

·        Arizona and Kansas tried similar legislation and tens of thousands of eligible voters were disenfranchised

The Republicans in Congress do not represent their constituents fully. They only represent white Christians. This is a attempt to Make America Christian Finally. "Finally" because this country was never a Christian theocracy. But if the Project 2025ers have their way, it will become one.