Re: DRAFT: Birmingham News Op-Ed

Here's the full updated op-ed that will run online On Sat, Oct 17, 2015 at 10:18 AM, Ian Sams <isams@hillaryclinton.com> wrote: > Just to clarify -- the op-ed had already been sent to print for the Sunday > edition by the time the announcement occurred and we were able to take it > into effect. But as Lauren said, it'll be reflected in the online version. > > -- > Ian Sams > (423) 915-6592 > > On Oct 17, 2015, at 10:11 AM, Lauren Peterson < > lpeterson@hillaryclinton.com> wrote: > > In the op ed or the speech? > > The change we requested in the op ed for the online version is this: > > But for every Republican governor working to dismantle voting rights across > our country, there are Americans determined to keep marching forward. I’m > proud of everyone in Alabama who leapt to confront this injustice. The > outcry has been so strong, it’s forced politicians in Montgomery to > reconsider. Governor Bentley and the legislature should listen to their > constituents. Those offices should stay open – and not just one day a > month. > > > > On Oct 17, 2015, at 10:04 AM, Nick Merrill <nmerrill@hillaryclinton.com> > wrote: > > Sitting here with the Op Ed Writer-in-Chief (not you Lauren) talking about > this. Given Bentley's Friday attempts to walk this back with monthly > visits, should we consider inserting a line that says his proposal doesn't > go far enough, so this is fresh and accounts for this most recent > pronouncements? > > > > On Thu, Oct 15, 2015 at 12:49 AM, Lauren Peterson < > lpeterson@hillaryclinton.com> wrote: > >> Hi everyone, >> >> Sending around this Birmingham News op-ed to coincide with Hillary's trip >> to Alabama. The op-ed will run this weekend. >> >> Please take a look and let me know your thoughts - this reflects >> preliminary input from many of you, which has been much appreciated! I >> could definitely use research's eyes on the statistics and the GOP contrast. >> >> Thanks! >> Lauren >> >> ### >> >> This month, Alabama announced the closing of 31 driver’s license offices >> in counties across the state, including those in eight of the 10 counties >> with the highest percentage of African Americans. Despite Governor >> Bentley’s insistence that the decision—which came a year after the state’s >> voter ID law took effect—has nothing to do with race, the parallels are >> inescapable: Alabama is living through a blast from the Jim Crow past. >> >> >> >> It’s hard to believe that 50 years after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. >> marched and Rosa Parks sat and John Lewis bled, Americans are still >> fighting to exercise the most fundamental right in our democracy. >> Meanwhile, Governor Bentley is offering the same excuses we’ve heard for >> half a century to justify laws that disproportionately affect people of >> color, low-income people, women, young people, and seniors. It reminds me >> of a saying from Arkansas: “You find a turtle on a fence post, it did not >> get there on its own.” >> >> >> >> But for every Republican governor working to dismantle voting rights, >> there are Americans determined to keep marching forward. I’m proud of the >> outcry in Alabama from people who have come together to demand better. It’s >> time for Governor Bentley to listen to your voices and reverse the decision >> to close DMV offices in the Black Belt and other rural counties. But the >> reforms shouldn’t stop there. Alabama is one of a handful of states with >> no early voting—that needs to change. Alabama should also eliminate the >> discriminatory and demeaning state requirement that people provide proof of >> citizenship along with their voter registration forms—a law modeled on one >> that has stopped more than 30,000 would-be voters from registering in >> Kansas. And they should make sure that Americans who have served time >> should have their voting rights restored once they’re released. >> >> >> >> Unfortunately (but not surprisingly), Alabama isn’t an outlier. Over the >> past few years, many states have passed laws that make it harder to vote. >> Since the Supreme Court gutted a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, a >> dire situation has gotten even worse. And there are those—including many >> of the Republican candidates for president—who would continue to push our >> country in this shameful direction. >> >> >> >> Jeb Bush says he wouldn’t reauthorize the Voting Rights Act—because it’s >> gotten easier to vote since it was passed. As Justice Ginsburg has said, >> that’s like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you’re not >> getting wet. Marco Rubio has supported harsh voter ID laws. John Kasich >> restricted early voting in Ohio—a state where 77 percent of early voters in >> 2008 were African American. What part of democracy are they so afraid of? >> >> >> >> Many of the people who fought and sacrificed for the right to vote are >> no longer alive to witness these abuses. But we are. And we have an >> obligation to stop the systematic and deliberate effort to disenfranchise >> voters. >> >> >> >> First, Congress should put principle ahead of politics and pass the >> Voting Rights Advancement Act—a bipartisan bill that would restore the full >> protections of the Voting Rights Act. >> >> >> >> Second, we should set a standard across this country of at least 20 days >> of early, in-person voting—including opportunities for weekend and evening >> voting. >> >> >> >> Third, we should go even further. We need universal, automatic voter >> registration—so that every young person in every state is automatically >> registered to vote when they turn 18, unless they choose to opt out. I >> applaud California for implementing this measure last week—an incredible >> victory in our most populous state. >> >> >> >> These steps alone won’t solve all of the challenges we face. But we owe >> it to future generations to fight back against attacks on voting, and to >> meet this moment with the bravery and determination of those who have come >> before us. It’s time for leaders in every party, at every level of >> government, to be on the right side of history. >> >> >> > >