In defense of Senate rules and traditions

Inflation is at its highest level in 40 years. Drug overdose deaths and illegal border crossings are at record levels. The murder rate is the highest since the 1990s. Russian troops are massing on Ukraine's border, and the President of the United States just greenlighted Vladimir Putin to invade. And China is continuing its aggression.

So what have the Democratic floor leader and the Senate Democrats spent the last two months doing? Trying to overturn 200 years of Senate rules and customs so that they can do things like ban voter ID nationwide and give taxpayer funding to campaigns.

They tell us that millions of Americans are living under Jim Crow 2.0 and they cite the recent Georgia election law as proof.

Well, let’s investigate this so-called “voter suppression law.” Under the new law, the State of Georgia will have 17 days of early voting. If this is Jim Crow 2.0, then I have bad news because the Democratic Leader’s home state of New York and the President’s home state of Delaware were engaged in, I guess what you’d call Jim Crow 3.0 as recently as last year—because New York had only nine days of early voting and Delaware had no days. Zero days of early voting.

Next, I’ve heard complaints that Georgia has reduced the number of ballot drop boxes in the state, even though they now require every county to have a dropbox, as was not the case as recently as 2018, and that Georgia’s added new security measures to prevent fraud.

Once again, I hate to break the news that the Democratic floor leader’s home state of New York had zero ballot dropboxes, and Joe Biden’s Delaware allowed for just five just last year.

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‘Conservative Commentary’ By U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton TOM COTTON (cont.)

And, of course, one of the Democrats’ favorite claims is that all those terrible Republicans down in Georgia have stopped campaign and political workers from giving food and drinks to people waiting in line at the polls. Where could Georgia have gotten such an idea? Well, as it turns out the Democratic floor leader’s home state of New York also has a nearly identical law banning such electioneering near polling places.

The Democrats also say voter ID is also the new Jim Crow—that might surprise the 69 percent of black Americans who support voter ID. Now, what are they up to? This is an especially good question given the letter that 28 Democrats still in the Senate signed on April 7, 2017 to the leadership around here urging them to oppose any effort—any effort—to stop the Senate’s tradition and custom of extended debate. Some of those Senators are on the floor with us at this moment. I see the junior senator from Illinois, and the junior senator from Hawaii, and the junior senator from Maine. The Presiding Officer for that matter. Many more were down here earlier.

Mr. President, I would invite through the Chair, any of those senators if they would like to engage in a colloquy to explain why they have changed their position since they signed that letter on April 7, 2017.

So, Mr. President, in conclusion, why are we doing all of this? Why are we going down this road?

Is it because this legislation is so popular? This issue is so important? You would think this was the top issue of the majority of Americans. But no, according to Gallup, only one percent of Americans list elections and federal election takeovers as their top priority.

Well, maybe the majority TOM COTTON (cont.)

of Americans support the procedural maneuvering tonight? The overturning 200 years of Senate rules and customs. Nope, wrong again.

According to a recent CBS poll, barely a third of Americans support this.

And while we’re waiting here for the Democrats’ doomed charge to overturn 200 years of Senate rules and customs and federalize our elections, Americans are dealing with very real, concrete, kitchen table issues.

Our people are getting poorer.

Inflation rose by seven percent over the past year, the highest rate in 40 years. Wages are failing to keep up.

Inflation might not be so bad for some of the millionaires around here, with their stock portfolios and real estate.

But for most Americans, it’s crippling. And it’s most crippling for those who can least afford it.

I shouldn’t have to point out, but people are dying in our communities all across the country. Murder was up by its highest record level in the keeping of modern records last year, and it’s up again this year. At a time where we also have 100,000 Americans dying of overdoses—the highest number ever recorded.

Another grim record.

Meanwhile, America is being overwhelmed at our southern border.

Border Patrol is stopping more than 175,000 illegal immigrants at our Southern border each month. We can only guess how many more are getting through.

These are real problems, that the American people have told us repeatedly that they want us to address. But you haven’t heard much about those problems.

We’re not here in session this week to debate those problems. The Democrats apparently don’t want to acknowledge these crises because they created these crises and they have no solution for these crises.

Tom Cotton is the Junior U. S. Senator from the State of Arkansas.

Find out more from Sen. Cotton online at cotton. senate. gov. Contact Sen. Tom Cotton at info@ tomcotton.