Former governing candidate and voting rights activist Stacey Abrams (D) went viral on social media in response to a GOP senator’s request to include all provisions in the which opposes Peach’s recently controversial voting law.
During a hearing Tuesday of the Senate Judiciary Committee on voting rights, the Republican senator. John Kennedy
John Neely Kennedy MORE (La.) He asked Abrams if he believes Georgia’s voting bill was signed by the government. Brian Kemp
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp Starts Boycott at Home Depot: “This Madness Must Stop” Religious Leaders Call for Home Depot Boycott by Georgia Voting Law (R) last month is “racist.”
“I think there are racist provisions, yes,” he replied.
Kennedy then asked the former candidate for Georgia’s Democratic governorship to “give” him a “list of the provisions he opposes.”
Abrams, who founded the Fair Fight Action voting group, went on to list the components of the bill that she said would put unfair disadvantages on certain segments of the population, including minority group voters and residents of low income.
“It shortens the federal segregation period from nine weeks to four weeks. It limits the amount of time a voter can apply for and return an absentee ballot, ”he began before commenting on the provision requiring voters to present photo identification when participating in absentee voting.
Abrams added that this provision would make Georgia “only the fourth state in the nation to require voters to jeopardize its identity” before Kennedy disrupted it.
“What else?” he questioned.
The former Georgia state representative went on to list other provisions he opposes, including limits on the number of polling station locations and a ban on “almost total votes outside the precinct.”
“That is, if you get to a venue and you’re in line for four hours and you get to the end of the line and you’re not there between 5pm and 7pm, you have to start again,” he added.
“OK. What else? That’s all?” Said the Louisiana senator.
“No, it’s not,” Abrams replied before letting out a quick laugh. “No sir.”
Abrams noted that the law allows venues to shorten voting periods, which he said “may affect voters who cannot vote during business hours.”
Then he began to move on to another disposition before Kennedy interrupted, “Okay. I have the idea.”
Several Twitter users praised Abrams for his treatment of Kennedy’s questions, while former Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander (D) wrote that “professionalism never happens at the expense of passion ”.
If you look at even a couple of minutes of this testimony, you will see it @staceyabrams do what you do best:
Make a compelling argument with respect and seriousness without alienating viewers who still disagree with it.
His professionalism never passes at the expense of passion. https://t.co/ZkPpSKFEtf
– Jason Kander (@JasonKander) April 21, 2021
Do. No. Come. To. Stacey. Abrams. https://t.co/5Vjk0i4Lhn
– pascal pascal (@StevePasquale) April 21, 2021
The interaction occurred during the same hearing as Abrams he entered into a heated exchange with GOP Sen. John Cornyn
John Cornyn Overnight Health Care: A Break from Johnson & Johnson Seen “Responsible” in Survey | Women presenting more than men against COVID-19 vaccines Cornyn sites own Biden Medicaid candidate Stacey Abrams: parts of Georgia’s new voting law have racist intent MORE (Texas), who asked him if he believed the Georgian legislature made “deliberate attempts to suppress minority voting,” to which Abrams replied, “Yes.”
“The state of Georgia targeted communities that used these resources for the first time for their benefit,” Abrams said, referring to the increase in email voting in the 2020 election.
Cornyn interrupted Abrams and accused her of filibustering and stating that she believed the electoral identification laws were racist.
Abrams backtracked, claiming that he supported electoral identification laws, but that the way Georgia’s law is oriented will disproportionately impact communities of color.