WASHINGTON, D.C. — Earlier tonight, President Trump addressed the nation with yet another divisive and inaccurate State of the Union, including baseless claims of widespread voter fraud and rampant noncitizen voting.
In response, Damon Hewitt, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, issued the following statement:
“Once again, Donald Trump stood before the American people and spewed nothing but hateful, divisive rhetoric and falsehoods about election integrity to sow distrust and uncertainty in our democratic systems. This first year of his second term has reminded us that he excels in doing two things–turning Americans against each other, and destroying the institutions and infrastructure that millions of people rely upon to keep us free and safe.
“Our democracy was built on the notion that the people should decide on who they choose to represent them–not the other way around. But this Trump regime is hell-bent on preserving its power over the people, launching coordinated disinformation campaigns to interfere with our free and fair elections, attempting to erect new barriers to the ballot box, and causing chaos and confusion in the states. What Trump and his extremist allies are calling for would have detrimental and longstanding effects on our country by silencing and excluding the voices of millions of people, including communities of color, LGBTQ+ communities, women, and low-income people. Making it harder for eligible citizens to vote would deepen existing racial disparities in voter registration and turnout, reverse decades of progress toward a more inclusive democracy, and erect new barriers for the very communities the Voting Rights Act was designed to protect.
“The Lawyers’ Committee categorically condemns the SAVE America Act and related bills that can best be described as anti-voter bills. Some may say the SAVE America Act is a solution in search of an imaginary problem. But the SAVE America Act is actually a problem in itself– rooted in the same kinds of disinformation that multiple courts, auditors, independent investigators, and even Trump’s own advisors repeatedly discredited. What Trump’s so-called solutions would actually do is impose unnecessary and burdensome requirements that would disenfranchise millions of eligible American citizens, all to his benefit. That is what this bogus solution is really about.
“Unlike Trump, the Lawyers’ Committee has a vision of democracy that is fair, open, and inclusive. We were built to protect and expand the voice, opportunity, and power of the people to make the promises of our democracy real, and we will fight every day to do so.”
