On the recordMarch 23, 2021
I rise to speak today on the For the People Act. But before I do, I want to take a moment to honor the lives of those tragically lost in Colorado yesterday by yet another senseless mass shooting in our country. My heart breaks for their families, but the sobering and harsh reality is that in many parts of the United States, it is easier to buy a gun than it is to cast a ballot. In 25 States, voters must be registered and have specific forms of identification in order to cast a ballot, but those same States allow people to buy rifles without permits and require no bond checks for some sales. Think about that. It seems to me that we have our priorities entirely backward when it comes to making it easier to buy a weapon than we do to cast a ballot. As we work to rebuild our economy for all people, we must acknowledge that to build an inclusive economy, we need an inclusive democracy. Just as the pandemic has put a spotlight on the inequities in our economy and our healthcare systems, so, too, has the pandemic put a spotlight on the inequities in access to the ballot. The 2020 election, held in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, demonstrated once again that we have made it easier for some citizens to vote than others. This is not an accident.…
