Washington, D.C. – On Friday, March 8, 2019, the House voted on H.R. 1, the For the People Act. One of the 193 members who voted against the bill, Congressman Randy Weber (R – Friendswood) released the following statement:

“Of all the bills seen on the House floor, this is the most blatantly unconstitutional. It claims to make voting fair, but instead rigs and unbalances the system should this ever become law. Our voting rights as given to us in the Constitution will be meaningless because this bill will set the precedent that Congress can change whatever the majority party pleases and deems most advantageous, in willful ignorance of Constitutional amendments.

“In giving all power of elections to the federal government, H.R. 1 takes away the critical right of states to maintain elections, thus weakening the integrity of our elections process and local elections and compromising the 10th Amendment. In allowing the government to give your taxpayer dollars to others for their campaign contributions and promising a 6:1 federal match made with your taxpayer dollars to any small campaign donations, H.R. 1 abuses the trust placed in Congress to manage the federal budget. Additionally, the notions laid out in H.R. 1 have no regard for the fact that you might not want your taxpayer dollars supporting a cause you don’t support.

“Should this bill become law and codify same day voter registration, any hope of verification of residence disappears. Should this bill become law, federal workers and unelected bureaucrats will obtain even greater unchecked powers and privileges. Should this bill become law, your freedom of speech and association granted to you by the 1st Amendment will be significantly limited.

“H.R. 1 even goes so far as to restore voting rights to convicted felons, undermining the 14th Amendment. The constitutional concerns are grave enough this bill should never have reached the House floor. My colleagues on the other side of the aisle sold this bill as a way to “un-swamp” elections and Washington D.C. This is dishonest and inexcusable. They are attempting to pull the wool over the eyes of the American people. I am taking a stand to say this is wrong and a disservice to the American people. I will continue to fight final passage of this dishonest piece of legislation.”

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