The Hour is Nigh

With unusual precision and clarity, an online New York Times editorial appearing yesterday laid it out: Republicans, who control most key state legislatures and state houses, rightly think that, given their stances on key issues, their chances of gaining control of Congress and the White House will be greatly diminished unless they can (i) institute voting laws designed to exclude a substantial number of voters likely to vote for Democratic candidates, and (ii) where possible, place responsibility for tabulating and certifying votes in the hands of partisan hacks who will manipulate the vote count in favor of Republican candidates.

Within the next couple of weeks, the proposed Freedom to Vote Act, introduced by Democrats and passage of which is critical to ensuring a reasonable degree of integrity in our electoral processes, will come before Congress for a vote. Since no Republican is expected to support it, there is virtually no chance it will become law unless all Democratic senators agree to modify the filibuster rule, so it can pass with a mere majority of votes rather than require 60% of them. What happens is likely to be pivotal in American history.