Attempts at saving democracy

The House passed a sweeping legislative package on Thursday designed to guard against abuses of presidential powers as part of a package of reforms put forth by Democrats in the wake of former President Trump’s White House tenure.

The legislation, titled the Protecting our Democracy Act, passed almost entirely along party lines by a vote of 220-208. Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), who has been critical of his party’s continued embrace of Trump, was the only Republican to vote to pass it, with all Democrats in support.

  The Hill

Where was Liz Cheney?

The legislation proposes statutory reforms in response to Trump’s refusal to concede that Biden won the 2020 election; the blanket stonewalling by Trump officials in response to House Democrats’ subpoenas; Trump issuing pardons to his political allies; and repeated violations of a law prohibiting government officials from using their positions to engage in political activities.

[...]

Republicans blasted the legislation as unnecessary and an attempt to exert excessive control over the executive branch.

Which wouldn't be necessary if the Republican Party weren't on a fascist kick.

The wide-ranging legislation put forth by Democrats would seek to establish more guardrails by, in part, requiring the Justice Department to provide information to Congress about any presidential pardon or commutation in cases involving a president or their relatives and suspending the statute of limitations for any federal crime committed by a sitting president or vice president.

It would further expedite the judicial process for congressional subpoena enforcement actions, after Trump officials effectively evaded participating in House Democrats’ investigations as court proceedings dragged on for months. In addition, it would authorize courts to issue fines to government officials who refuse to cooperate with congressional subpoenas.

[...]

A provision of the bill would require the president and vice president, as well as major-party candidates for those offices, to release ten years’ worth of tax returns to the Federal Election Commission (FEC). And if they refused to disclose the returns, the Treasury Department would be required to provide them to the FEC, which would make them public.

Another provision of the bill would require political committees to report to the FBI and FEC about certain foreign contacts. And in turn, the FBI would have to inform congressional intelligence committees about any reported contacts.

Where's the part about a president using the office for personal gain? Or the part about a president conceding a loss and peacefully transferring power? Or the part about inciting supporters to riot?

The General Services Administration (GSA) didn't officially inform Biden that the Trump administration was ready to begin the process [of transferring power] until more than two weeks after Biden was declared the winner in the election.

House Democrats’ bill would require each eligible presidential candidate and vice presidential candidate to be treated as the winner if the GSA doesn’t begin the transition process within five days of an election, until an ascertainment is made or Congress certifies the actual winner.

Despite Democrats’ control of both chambers of Congress and the White House, the bill faces long odds for advancing in the Senate given a likely GOP filibuster.

And the Democrats could do something about that, too, if they could all get on the same page.

At least two centrist Democrats, Sens. Joe Manchin (W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.), have remained adamant all year against changing Senate filibuster rules so that 60 votes aren’t required to advance almost all legislation.

Schiff urged his Democratic colleagues across the Capitol to establish an exemption to the filibuster for bills related to voting rights and protecting democracy.

“I think any delay in passage of these democracy reforms continues to put our country at risk and this experiment in self-governance at risk,” Schiff said.

I think he's right.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.