Southern Republicans Delay Renewal of 1965 Voting Rights Act
The House abruptly dropped plans Wednesday to vote on a renewal of the Voting Rights Act, a momentous law from the civil rights era, after House Republicans disagreed on whether to require bilingual ballots and federal oversight of Southern states. The dissension in a closed session meeting grew so intense Republican leaders postponed indefinitely a scheduled vote to renew the act. "That ought to be a significant embarrassment as they fan around the country trying to skim off a few black votes in the next four months," said Representative Artur Davis, a Democrat from Alabama.As if they had forgotten what century this is, several Southern Republicans contended at the meeting that the renewal unfairly singled out nine states for federal oversight, without giving them credit for making strides against discriminatory voting practices in their pasts.
But a dozen House hearings have demonstrated that discrimination still exists, according to Representative F. James Sensenbrenner Jr., a Republican from Wisconsin who is chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. He and the committee's top Democrat, Representative John Conyers of Michigan, insisted that the 1965 act passed renewed by the House without any changes.
One concern had its roots in the bill's origins, which require nine states with a documented history of discrimination against black voters, such as poll taxes and literacy tests, to obtain Justice Department approval for their election laws.
Another, collateral damage from this year's immigration debates, had to do with requirements in some states for ballots printed in multiple languages and the presence of interpreters at polling places where large numbers of citizens speak limited English.
Some members of the Republican caucus also suggested delaying the debate until the Supreme Court issues a ruling in a controversial 2003 Texas redistricting case, hoping to delay that decision, with fingers crossed, until some time after this November's mid-term elections. That decision, expected in the next two weeks, will examine the issue of whether Hispanic voters were disenfranchised.
Whatever the sparked the delay, it triggered explosive reactions on Capitol Hill.
"It was heated," said Rep. Scott Garrett, R-NJ, who supports an amendment by Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, to end a requirement for bilingual ballots in jurisdictions where at least 5 percent of the population speaks a different language. "I've been in meetings for two hours. There are meetings going on all over the Hill."
Civil rights groups across the nation also expressed disappointment over the decision. "Those members who held up today's vote represent retrogressive forces that America hasn't seen at this level since the 1960s," said Wade Henderson, executive director of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights. "Many of those trying to derail the Voting Rights Act represent states with the most egregious records of discrimination in voting -- discrimination that continues to this day."
On the record, House Republican leaders said in a statement that they are "committed to passing the Voting Rights Act legislation as soon as possible."
- June 22, 2006
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