[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 150 (Tuesday, August 24, 2021)]
[House]
[Page H4416]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            UPHOLDING THE LEGACY OF THE HONORABLE JOHN LEWIS

  (Mr. PANETTA asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PANETTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise with pride and in support of 
tonight's passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights Act.
  As we know, the right to vote is fundamental to our Nation. That is 
why we should be doing everything possible not to make it more 
difficult to vote but to enhance voting rights.
  H.R. 4 does that by modifying the Voting Rights Act to restore and 
strengthen its antidiscrimination enforcement authorities.
  Now, in my district, prior to the Shelby decision, we had a voting 
rights county. But, clearly, the threats to our ability to vote are not 
limited to my district as this year alone 18 States across the country 
have passed 30 laws making it harder to vote.
  That is why I voted for this bill. That is why John Lewis served and 
sacrificed, and that is why he crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge in 1965 
and in 2020 when I was honored to cross it with him, hand in hand.
  Tonight, we not only upheld the legacy of John Lewis but, by passing 
H.R. 4, we were able to eventually provide citizens with more 
opportunity to vote in our democracy.

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