Action 9 – defeat the SAVE act!

Background:

This is a companion piece to Action 8, but instead of being targeted at voters themselves, this action focuses on Congress. Apparently, the right wingers want to get rid of motor voter and similar provisions nationwide. The SAVE act passed the House in the last session but floundered in the Senate. Now that the Senate is in Republican hands, it has a chance of passing. The bill would require proof of citizenship to register, namely a birth certificate. Jared Golden was one of 5 Democrats to vote for the bill last year (198 other Dems voted no, but all 216 Republicans voted yes. https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2024345 ).

Action: Call our Senators and Representative Golden

Senator Collins (207) 945-0417 https://www.collins.senate.gov/contact

Senator King (207) 945-8000  https://www.king.senate.gov/contact/office-locations

Representative Golden. (207) 249-7400 https://golden.house.gov/contact/offices

For phone calling the Senators, here’s a sample script from Jessica Craven: Feel free to modify.

“Hi, I’m a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is ______.

I’m calling to express my strong opposition to the SAVE Act — an extreme voter suppression bill that Congress will apparently be prioritizing this session. If passed, most Americans would be unable to register to vote using their driver’s license or other state-provided identification alone. It’s nuts! The SAVE Act will especially burden young people, who would face hurdles that already-registered citizens do not face, and married women, who often change their names and will therefore no longer be able to use their birth certificates to register. The SAVE Act isn’t necessary—it’s already illegal to vote if you’re not a citizen—and it’s going to make it harder for citizens to vote. Please oppose it. Thanks. 

Phoning Golden: You might point out that he was misguided on this one. He appears to be following the “bipartisan” strategy of Susan Collins: vote with the opposition party when it doesn’t affect the outcome. (Note Golden worked as staff for Collins earlier in his career.) It’s time for him to become a loyal Democrat: the stakes are too high to straddle the fence.

Background:

https://thecivicscenter.substack.com/p/the-save-act-is-a-voter-suppression?utm_campaign=email-half-post&r=15lxwx&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/house-republicans-to-prioritize-controversial-save-act-in-new-session/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

https://www.maine.gov/sos/news/2022/AutomaticvoterregistrationtobeunveiledatBMVlocations.html

https://mainemorningstar.com/briefs/number-of-active-registered-voters-in-maine-dips-nearly-15-from-2022/

https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2024345