Well. It was quite a week. Congress met to confirm the electoral votes, and Washington D.C. faced an attack by extremists. But here at the League in Maine, we're still hopeful— we still have faith in the strength of our democracy. Together, we'll get through this. We're pressing on with our advocacy work, and needless to say, 2021 is going to get busy. Buckle up!
NEWS:
Washington D.C.: On January 6, domestic terrorists stormed our Capitol. Virginia Kase, CEO of LWVUS, issued this statement: "This is a dark day in the history of the United States of America. Today’s activity on Capitol Hill should have been a procedural exercise to finalize the 2020 election. Instead, our nation's Capitol was attacked by domestic terrorists seeking to invalidate the will of the people." Read the full statement here.
On January 8, the League of Women Voters of the U.S. board of directors met and voted unanimously to call for the immediate removal of Donald J. Trump from the office of the President of the United States of America via any legal means, including and in order of preference: impeachment with disqualification, the invocation of the 25th amendment, or resignation. Read the full statement here.
U.S. Congress Persisted: On Wednesday, January 6, after pro-Trump extremists were cleared from the U.S. Capitol grounds, Congress reconvened to count the votes. Originally, about 14 Republican Senators and over 100 Republican Representatives were going to challenge the count. Those numbers dwindled after the events on Wednesday, but the objections that remained did not halt the certification process of the election results.
Here in Maine: On Monday, January 4, Shenna Bellows took the oath as the 50th Maine Secretary of State. Congratulations, Madame Secretary! But the legislative session is also off to a slow start. No session days have been scheduled as yet, no bills have been printed, and no committee hearings have begun. We are hearing that committee orientation hearings may not begin until January 18. When they do, they will be conducted online. We are waiting to learn more details, but we expect that public testimony will be delivered remotely via Zoom or a similar web conference service.
WHAT THE LEAGUE IS WORKING ON:
To create the kind of change voters want to see in our democracy, our next administration and Congress must support the passage of HR 1 — For the People Act — a once-in-a-generation democracy reform package to clean up our political system, get big money out of politics, hold elected officials accountable for corruption, expand and protect voting rights, and create a democracy that values the voices of all Americans. Read more about HR 1 from the Brennan Center here.
Sign our petition. Then, contact Representative Chellie Pingree, Representative Jared Golden, Senator King, and Senator Collins and urge them to support HR 1.