Folks --
A recent poll shows that 82 percent of all voters support reforms to address corruption in politics. Well, folks — here’s how the Republican leadership in the United States Senate plans on making those millions of Americans proud: By threatening to not even allow a vote on a bill that would address corruption in our politics. (You really can't make this stuff up.) It’s called the "For the People Act of 2019" (the House of Representatives’ H.R. 1 bill) -- and among other important reforms, it would strengthen our public financing system for campaigns to give more power to small-dollar donors, make campaign contributions more transparent, and make it easier for more Americans to cast a ballot. Not exactly the stuff of controversy. Mitch McConnell and other Republicans in the Senate say it’s dead in the water. That's because they’re betting on the millions of Americans who support this reform not speaking up. Let’s show them that’s a bad bet to make. Add your name alongside mine, and call on the Senate to take a stand for the American people and pass the “For the People Act of 2019.” Add Your Name >> The way this bill came to be is exemplary of the way things ought to work in our politics. Last October, more than 100 Democratic candidates sent a letter to the leaders of the Republican controlled 115th Congress, putting them on notice. You and I campaigned for many of those candidates. In that letter, they vowed to make campaign finance and election reform their top priority if they were elected. Because, as they wrote in that letter: We share the American people’s impatience and frustration over the lack of reforms and transparency and the role of money in our politics. We hear day in and day out that special interests are drowning out the voices of everyday citizens – to the point where many Americans no longer believe their votes even count. Restoring faith in our elections and in the integrity of our elected officials should be a top priority that all members of Congress can agree upon. Well, many of those folks did end up getting elected — because millions of Americans agreed with their ideas. And do you know what they did on the same day they were sworn into a newly Democratic House of Representatives? They introduced the For the People Act on the floor of the House. This is why we worked to elect these folks. This is what honest and accountable legislating looks like. You hear from the people that they want something done, you declare your intention to do it, and then you follow the legislative process through. Period. Now, we have a chance to call on the Republican leadership in the Senate to see this thing through. Tell the Senate to stand up for millions of Americans and pass the For the People Act. Thank you. -Joe
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