Cord Byrd: “Today, the Congress gathers to exercise the role laid out by the Framers in the Constitution of the United States. The…”

“Today, the Congress gathers to exercise the role laid out by the Framers in the Constitution of the United States. The past two national elections have been surrounded in controversy, not just controversy over issues and ideas--which is important and healthy in a democratic system of government--but also controversy over the mechanics of the election and the counting of the votes. The 2000 election left citizens across this country with a belief that not every vote was fairly counted. In response, Congress passed a much-needed reform legislation. States worked to modernize their equipment and procedures. We had high hopes that the 2004 election-- under much closer scrutiny than the election of 2000--would provide the public with confidence that everyone who registered would be able to vote, and that every vote cast would be counted accurately. Yet, despite the legislation and the more than $2 billion dedicated to fixing the election problems, the election of 2004 was marred with reports of irregularities and, as a result, there is a significant group of our citizenry that seriously questions the results of the vote, and particularly the vote in Ohio.”