Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) does not have anything positive to say about the election reform bill passed by the House of Representatives last week.
“Everything about this bill is rotten to the core. This is a bill as if written in hell by the devil himself,” Lee said during an appearance on Fox News Wednesday.
He added, “This takes all sorts of decisions that the federal government really has no business making. It takes them away from the states. It makes them right here in Washington, D.C., by Congress.”
Watch his comments below:
Mike Lee on HR1: "This is a bill as if written in hell by the devil himself." pic.twitter.com/NfNvv30NBA
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 10, 2021
The House passed the For The People Act, also known as H.R. 1, in a 220-210 vote to expand voting access.
The legislation requires states to offer mail-in ballots, at least 15 days of early voting, and advocates for online and same-day voter registration.
The For The People Act also includes resources to combat foreign election threats. It enables automatic voter registration and would establish Election Day as a national holiday for federal employees.
The Biden administration has expressed support for the measure.
“In the wake of an unprecedented assault on our democracy, a never before seen effort to ignore, undermine, and undo the will of the people, and a newly aggressive attack on voting rights taking place right now all across the country, this landmark legislation is urgently needed to protect the right to vote and the integrity of our elections, and to repair and strengthen American democracy,” the White House said in a statement.
The legislation comes as other states including Georgia are pushing more restrictive voting bills.
Former President Jimmy Carter slammed Georgia lawmakers on Tuesday in a statement for attempting to “turn back the clock” through the legislation, as IJR reported.
“I am disheartened, saddened, and angry. Many of the proposed changes are reactions to allegations of fraud for which no evidence was produced—allegations that were, in fact, refuted through various audits, recounts, and other measures,” Carter said.