Our democracy cannot continue half-slave and half-free.

This legislation in Texas would strip the ability of Harris County to do that.

We can't win if everybody votes.

Unfortunately, the Supreme Court effectively gutted the VRA's preclearance requirement in 2013...

It rightly prevented potentially discriminatory voting practices from taking effect before they could harm minority voters.

they not only hurt Black people, Brown people, and indigenous people, but they also hurt poor White people.

We can't just fold up our hands and give it to the State legislators because, if we did that, we know we would be back in Jim Crow times.

It is time that we, as the people's House, rise to this threat to our democracy and pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.

History repeats itself often, and, unfortunately, in the Deep South, from where I hailed, that has gone on pre-Civil War, post-Civil War...

The Voting Rights Act with an effective preclearance provision went a long way towards righting that wrong.

so we at least have a shot at winning.

I appreciate Mr. Courtney for yielding to me, and I appreciate him for bringing this bill. He has a long history of now 15 years of looking out for workers, laborers, and their fair place in our country, and I thank him for that. Over the…