Political Quotes

“I rise today to warn of a gathering threat to American's most fundamental constitutional right; that is, the right to vote. Fifty-one years ago, President Johnson urged the Congress to pass the Voting Rights Act. In the face of implacable opposition from Southern States, President Johnson laid out the stakes. He said: Every American must have an equal right to vote. There is no excuse which can excuse the denial of that right. There is no duty which weighs more heavily on us than the duty we have to ensure that right. Sadly, half a century after that law began to remove the most offensive obstacles to voting, Americans now face new barriers to exercising their fundamental right to vote. Across our land, there are stories of long lines, inexplicable purges of voter rolls, and new requirements that make it still harder for our people to vote. There is absolutely no excuse for accepting this sorry state of affairs. There is no excuse for citizens in Arizona to wait 5 hours to cast their ballot. There is no excuse for citizens in Rhode Island to find two out of every three polling places have closed. There is no excuse whatsoever for poor communities and minority communities across America to see their polling places shuttered. Seniors and disabled Americans should not have to wait in long lines or struggle to reach polling places in America. Working parents should not have to choose between going to work and going to vote.…”