[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 10592]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT

  (Mr. JEFFRIES asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. JEFFRIES. Mr. Speaker, the Voting Rights Act has a strong 
bipartisan history. It was reauthorized by Congress in 2006 with the 
overwhelming support of both Democrats and Republicans.
  Yet the Supreme Court, in striking down a key provision of this 
historic civil rights legislation 2 days ago, has undermined the 
integrity of the democratic process.
  It was a jurisprudential hijacking of the principle of responsive and 
representative government. It's a decision that will go down in 
history, right next to the infamous Dred Scott opinion written way back 
in 1857.
  The unencumbered right to vote is fundamental to the foundation of 
this democracy. In this regard, the Supreme Court has failed the 
Nation. Let's make sure that this Congress does not do the same.

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