‘Every Time Trump Tried Interfere…’: Joe Morelle’s Election Warning Resurfaces Ahead Of Midterm

Thank you very much. I am so grateful to be here today at the Judiciary Committee Spotlight hearing on protecting American democracy and defending the right to vote. I want to first begin by thanking my dear friend and my classmate, the ranking member, Ms. Scanlon, as well as Mr. Beyer, my friend from Virginia, and I understand will soon be joined by a ranking Thank you, member of the whole committee, Mr. Raskin. Grateful to be with you. I was with Representative Scanlon in her district last week to discuss this important topic. And that hearing was, I thought, extremely productive and I remain so appreciative of you hosting us in the district and, of course, organizing this important conversation this afternoon. I also want to acknowledge House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Under Leader Jeffries' leadership, our unified caucus. He has provided an indispensable check on this administration, and when we call him Speaker Jeffries in just a few months, I always like to knock on wood as I say that, there will be so much more to do. So today's conversation is vitally important, this spotlight examining the security of our elections, the threats they face, and the weapons we as members... The House have to fight back. It's never been more urgent in this moment as I go around and tell people a little bit about my travels. I've been to Pennsylvania, to Missouri, to Texas, to California, to Maryland, all around this country. Thank You know, I say it's kind of extraordinary that we have to do everything that we have to do. It's a little surreal even that we're holding shadow and spotlight hearings to talk about this. I always took it as an article of faith. But even growing up in this great democracy, I couldn't imagine a time when we would need to do it. you. But we need to do it, and it's critical. And the health of this democracy, the security of our elections, the strength of public trust in government, each of those are critical components. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. And I love the way my colleague and friend talked about our superpower. It's what keeps the 250-year American experiment alive, superpower of voting. And there's nothing more urgent, I think, in this moment than protecting that superpower and protecting American democracy. Our overarching objectives are straightforward. Every eligible American must have a meaningful opportunity to cast a ballot. Those ballots must be counted fairly and accurately. And then finally, a House. We're all concerned about the House. But on January 3rd, 2027, when we gather, that House must reflect the will of the American people as expressed in their votes up to and including November 3rd. So I would just note, too, when I go around, people are expressing their anxiety. I understand it. But they should know we're winning. Every time the Trump administration has tried to interfere with the integrity of midterm elections, they have failed. They have lost in the courts. States are 23 and 0 against the Department of Justice's illegal attempts. To force states to turn over their voter rolls. 23 and 0. That should give someone confidence in the court system. The Postal Service proposed a final rule attempting to disenfranchise millions of Americans at the request of the president in accordance with his illegal executive order. The rule was immediately blocked in federal court. And even this Supreme Court recognized how offensively illegal The president's order was and in Congress, despite House Republicans, multiple attempts to pass. Any number of versions of the SAVE Act, they have failed to enact the provisions into law. So we should be clear eyed about the threats that we currently and will face in the coming weeks. I don't think there's any question that the president, to his credit, says the quiet part out loud. And it's subverting the will of the American people is clearly something he wants to do. He and his allies want to take over the election. He has said as much. And sadly, we find ourselves in a moment when democracy's defenses are weakened. We used to think, all of us, as the Department of Justice being a bulwark, we'd think about the FBI as being defenders of the public interest, the Department of Homeland Security. But they are doing their duty to their audience of one, to the president. And disregarding, and not only disregarding, acting as aggressors when it comes to American democracy in this election. So despite that, and look, the president and this administration has defunded and gutted the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, CISA, and all of its support for election administrators. Kind of the incongruity of the president going on national television talking about cyber threats to this democracy after he has dismantled. That agency, which was intended to defend American democracy against attacks in the cyberspace. So people close to the president have publicly mused about sending armed federal agents to the polls in a direct violation of federal law. It is a crime. To enter into a polling place armed, whether you're military or civilian, most people would know that the president apparently does not. So in the face of all this, I have the privilege of serving as the ranking Democrat, as Ms. Scanlon said, the committee of House administration, which has jurisdiction over federal elections. We've undertaken this assessment of how House Democrats and pro-democracy allies, and there are many of them, and I want to thank them publicly for all the work they're doing. They have stood up and they're pushing back. Our planned targeted responses include litigation, effective community organization, mobilization, communication, and promoting early voting. So in partnership with leaders like the panelists we have today, and so grateful to them for coming and sharing their wisdom, failure is quite simply not an option, or as Susan B. Anthony from Rochester, New York would say, failure is impossible. Frederick Douglass, who was buried in Rochester and wrote the North Star, I always like to get this into my friends, both. So if you come from Rochester, New York, voting. And suffrage is in your DNA. So we will not allow the corruption of this administration, the culture which is pervading this administration and has real costs. Americans are struggling to afford things because of that corruption. The president wastes millions on vanity projects. It's kind of hard to imagine the things he focuses on with all the challenges we have. He sends taxpayer money to billionaire donors and simultaneously cutting their taxes, protecting our democracy. doesn't end with protecting our elections. We must restore American trust in government. So it's a large project. I'm looking forward to doing this with all of my friends here seated at this table. The work is ongoing. It is iterative. There's still a long road ahead, but I remain confident every single day that through this work, we'll be more prepared than ever in the coming weeks because the election is here. It's important to remember, thousands of Americans have already voted and millions of ballots already been sent out. So we're in the middle of this. It's not just November 3rd it's leading up to. So people are voting. We're doing great work. All of our panelists and the organizations have been just so incredibly, I'm incredibly grateful for the amazing work they're doing. Again, I want to thank Ms. Scanlon, Mr. Raskin, my colleagues, Mr. Byer, Mr. Ivey, to the panelists who are here. Let's keep up the fight. And with that, Madam Chair, Madam Ranking Member, can I call you Chair? I'm going to call you Chair soon. With that, I yield back. Thank you.