Austin Scott: “I appreciate you yielding me this time. Let me just pick up from the last point: Why shouldn't it be applied to the…”

“I appreciate you yielding me this time. Let me just pick up from the last point: Why shouldn't it be applied to the whole Nation? The opposition knows full well: if that were the case, it would immediately be ruled unconstitutional. In every case, the Supreme Court was very clear that whatever the remedy is, it must fix the size of the problem where there has been demonstrated discrimination. That is the whole purpose of it. Mr. Chairman, let me quickly with my time, I want to get to this amendment because it is very important that we show why this amendment is designed to do two things: one, to make this bill unconstitutional; and, two, to kill the Voting Rights Act. The Norwood amendment would do one important thing: it would take the list of jurisdictions currently covered under section 5 and throw it in the garbage can. It would completely disavow every known jurisdiction that is now covered under the Voting Rights Act. That alone is enough for us to have a reason to defeat this amendment. We know that jurisdictions on the list today are still discriminating because we heard testimony, 12,000 pages of testimony. I was there in the committee each and every day. And much of that testimony, Mr. Chairman, came directly from the State of Georgia. As I said earlier, there is no State that needs the Voting Rights Act's protection as does Georgia. When my colleagues from Georgia say they are being punished, who is being punished?…”