House passes bill to require proof of citizenship when registering to vote
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The House passed a bill Wednesday requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote. This measure was strongly opposed by the White House and top Democrats despite evidence of non-citizens voting in federal elections.
The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE) was passed by a majority of 216 Republicans, and five Democrats. Among those who crossed party lines were swing-district Reps. Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez from Texas; Jared Golden and Don Davis (both Democrats) from Maine; Jared Golden and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez from Washington.
The bill was opposed in part by 198 Democrats.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said: “Today 198 House Democrats have voted against the prohibition of illegal aliens voting in American elections.” In a press release. “Joe Biden welcomed millions and millions of illegals to the United States over the past four-year period, knowing that they only had to check a single box in order to vote at a federal election.”
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Johnson added, “We knew this was a deliberate effort to convert them into voters. Now the American public knows where each member of Congress stands on such a critical issue.” House Republicans believe only Americans should be allowed to vote in American elections. “House Democrats have now proved that they believe illegal aliens should be able to vote in American elections.”
State and federal investigations show that it’s illegal for non US citizens to vote in federal election. But this hasn’t deterred hundreds of people from voting and thousands more from trying to vote, according to the findings.
House Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-NY, whipped his caucus to oppose what he called “an extreme MAGA Republican voter suppress bill” before incorrectly stating that “there is no evidence presented that suggests that undocumented persons have participated in federal elections.”
On Monday, the White House issued a threat of veto against the legislation.
The White House Office of Management and Budget issued a statement saying that it was already illegal for citizens to vote in Federal Elections. It is a Federal Crime punishable with prison and fines.
The statement states that “Falsely claiming citizenship or voting illegally in an election will result in removal from the United States as well as a permanent ban on admission.”
This bill will not safeguard our elections. It will make it harder for eligible Americans to register and it increases the risk of eligible voters being removed from voter lists.
The Campaign Legal Center, a left-of-center group, has dismissed further concerns that the loophole could influence elections. Conservatives remain unconvinced.
Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, who introduced the legislation, told The Post on Tuesday and other journalists that the claims of it disenfranchising US voters are “hogwash.”
Roy stated, “We have seen Democrats trying to abuse it.” “And, you know, Democrats are pushing for non-citizens in Oakland, San Francisco, New York, DC, and across the nation.”
He suggested that “They say – wink, wink – ‘Only at state and local election'”.
Johnson’s Office released a white paper of 21 pages on the legislation in the last month. It urged Congress to pass the bill and prevent “foreign interference” with elections as a result the record breaking 6.4 million immigrants that have entered the US since President Biden assumed office in January 2021.
The paper refers to another attempt by Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Texas, last year to introduce legislation which would grant mass amnesty for migrants — including those who had illegally voted at past elections.
Johnson said in his speech that there are so many illegal aliens living in the United States that even if one in 100 of them voted, that would be hundreds of thousands. He added that this number could “determine” the future of the great Republic.
“As my dear friend [Mariannette] Miller Meeks will tell to you, she won her election by six votes in 2020,” he said, referring the Iowa Republican’s narrow victory over Democrat Rita Hart.
The position paper also cited a study by Johnson’s staff that concluded non-citizen voting participation “has been significant enough to affect meaningful election outcomes, including Electoral College and Congressional votes.”
The paper states that if the same level of non-citizen voting occurs in November it will be “sufficient to determine the outcome for the 2024 Presidential Election.”
Hans von Spakovsky is a former Federal Election Commission member and manager of the Election Law Reform Initiative of the Heritage Foundation. He told The Post in a recent article that “it’s difficult to predict the number of aliens who may vote, because so many state do nothing to verify citizenship of registered voters.”
This bill will help by cleaning voter lists in US states and verifying individuals through federal databases of the Department of Homeland Security, the Social Security Administration.
Audits have shown that thousands of noncitizens are on the voter rolls, including in swing states like Pennsylvania and Georgia.
The National Voter Registration Act of 1994 requires that Department of Motor Vehicles offices (DMVs) and welfare offices in 46 states provide voter registration forms along with driver’s licence applications and federal benefit program applications.
Filling out the federal application requires that voters sign an attestation of citizenship. In some states, they must also include their driver’s licence number or their last four digits social security number.
Only three US States — Tennessee, Virginia, and New Mexico — require the complete Social Security Number.
The Biden administration, on the other hand, has increased access to federal benefits, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and health care, making these forms more accessible to migrants.
The Social Security Administration has made it possible for foreigners, asylum seekers and parolees in the US to get a social security number.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Biden, as a 2020 presidential candidate, supported a policy that allows non-citizens in 19 states, including Washington, DC, to obtain driver’s licences.
Johnson stated before the vote that “Perhaps, the Democrat Party prefers we only identify fraud voters after the event but after an elections has already been decided and the new member is sworn in.” “That is not acceptable.” This does not inspire trust. “It doesn’t guarantee the integrity of the systems.”
“Because they have repeatedly shown that the Democratic Party wants our borders to be wide open.”