Ted Cruz Casts Lone ‘No’ Vote Against Legislation Designed to Avoid Another Jan. 6: ‘This Bill Is All About Donald J. Trump’
The Senate Rules Committee green-lit a bill meant to clarify the procedure for certifying presidential election results in Congress to avoid another Capitol insurrection, though without the support of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).
Both Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) support the legislation, which is expected to have enough Republican support to garner the necessary 60 votes to advance in the 50-50 chamber.
The Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act would amend the Electoral Count Act of 1887 by stating that the vice president’s role as presiding officer over election certification is merely ceremonial. It would also make it more difficult for lawmakers to object to a state’s election results. The aim is to provide more clarity surrounding certification after then-President Donald Trump called on then-Vice President Mike Pence to refuse to certify the results of the 2020 election in his role as presiding officer.
Pence declined to attempt such a stunt, and a riot ensued at the Capitol.
The Rules Committee voted 14-1 on Tuesday to advance the bill to the full Senate. Cruz cast the lone vote against it.
“This bill’s a bad bill,” Cruz said, explaining his vote. “This bill is bad law, it’s bad policy, and it’s bad for democracy.”
Cruz quoted Article II of the U.S. Constitution, which states, “Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors…”
The senator claimed the bill is an instance of Congress “trying to intrude on the authority of the state legislatures to do that.” He also claimed, “This bill is all about Donald J. Trump, and nobody in our lifetime has driven Democrats in this body more out of their minds than President Trump.”
Other Republicans on the committee disagreed.
“The chaos that came to a head on Jan. 6 of last year strongly suggests that we fund careful ways to clarify and streamline the process,” McConnell said at the committee hearing.
Watch above via C-SPAN.
