1. On May 31, Texas Republicans were fully prepared to pass a sweeping voter suppression bill
But the bill failed because House Democrats walked out, denying the GOP a quorum
The GOP will take the bill up again in a special session
But something EXTRAORDINARY is happening
2. Republicans are COMPLETELY UNPREPARED to defend the substance of the bill and are abandoning major provisions.
First, the GOP claimed the ban on Sunday voting before 1PM was a typo
This isn't credible because they defended the ban as the bill was debated
But its OUT
3. Now Republicans are scrapping a provision to allow Texas judges to void an election based on thin evidence of fraud (w/o regard to whether the alleged fraud changed the result)
A chief House sponsor of the bill now calls the provision "horrendous"!
4. Keep in mind THESE PROVISIONS PASSED THE TEXAS SENATE AND WOULD BE TEXAS LAW HAD DEMOCRATS NOT WALKED OUT
Now Republicans are saying the bill was full of "typos" and "horrendous" provisions
WTF!
5. The Texas House Speaker tried to convince Democrats not to walk out, arguing that passage of the bill was inevitable and it could get worse in a special session
Good thing Democrats did not listen to him
6. There may not be a special session until the Fall. How many more "typos" or horrendous provisions will be found before then?
When defending the indefensible, time is not on your side
For updates & accountability journalism, sign up for the newsletter
2. First, let's talk about what Trump said. After E. Jean Carroll accused Trump of raping her in a dressing room in the mid-90s, Trump claimed he never met Carroll, accused her of lying to sell books, & suggested she was conspiring w/the Democratic Party
1. Manchin's rationale for opposing the For The People Act, which would thwart state efforts to undermine voting rights, underscores the central role of the @USChamber.
Manchin is essentially quoting the Chamber's talking points
3. The @USChamber is engaged in an aggressive lobbying campaign against federal action to protect voting rights that is financed by the same corporations who say they support voting rights.
1. A constellation of obscure websites — populated with content stolen from outlets like @Politico, @Axios, & @BuzzFeedNews — has played a significant role in the fundraising success of Marjorie Taylor Greene, Josh Hawley, and other Republicans
Manchin's justification for opposing to the For The People Act tracks closely to the talking points of the @USChamber
The Chamber, funded by millions from major corporations that claim they support voting rights, is engaged in an aggressive lobbying campaign against the bill
"In Donald J. Trump’s final weeks in office, Mark Meadows, his chief of staff, repeatedly pushed the Justice Department to investigate unfounded conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election"
"In 5 emails sent during the last week of December and early January, Meadows asked Rosen, then the acting attorney general, to examine debunked claims of election fraud in New Mexico and an array of baseless conspiracies that held that Mr. Trump had been the actual victor"