(CNSNews.com) – House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D.-Calif.) sent a letter to her Democratic colleagues in the House of Representatives on Friday saying that “Republicans are engaged in an election subversion that imperils our democracy.”
“At a time when the pandemic is ravaging our country, we must all come together to crush this virus,” Pelosi said.
“Up until now, the president has refused to lead our country in that way and now more than 15 million Americans have been infected and nearly 300,000 killed–more Americans than died in combat in World War II,” she said.
“It is imperative that our nation comes together to protect the lives and livelihoods of the American people,” Pelosi continued. “Instead, Republicans are engaged in election subversion that imperils our democracy.
“This week, 126 House Republicans, nearly two-thirds of the GOP Conference, signed onto an extreme partisan lawsuit demanding that the will of voters in four states–Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin–-be overturned and that the Electoral College votes be awarded to Donald Trump,” said Pelosi.
The lawsuit Pelosi was referring to is Texas v. Pennsylvania. On Friday, the same day Pelosi issued her Dear Colleague letter, the Supreme Court issued an order saying it would not hear the case.
“The State of Texas’s motion for leave to file a bill of complaint is denied for lack of standing under Article III of the Constitution,” said the court’s order. “Texas has not demonstrated a judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another State conducts its elections.”
Justice Samuel Alito issued brief statement along with the order that Justice Clarence Thomas joined him in.
“In my view, we do not have discretion to deny the filing of a bill of complaint in a case that falls within our original jurisdiction,” said Alito. “I would therefore grant the motion to file the bill of complaint but would not grant other relief, and I express no view on any other issue.”
The amicus brief filed by the Republican House members argued that officials in some states changed the rules of the November election violating the constitutional provision that empowered state legislators to determine how Electoral College voters were determined.
“The Framers of the U.S. Constitution granted plenary authority to state legislatures to ‘appoint’ electors to choose a President,” said the brief. “The Electors Claude, Art. II, Section 1, cl. 2, directs that: ‘Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in Congress…’”
“Because the Framers recognized elections could be corrupted or stolen,’ said the brief, “they created the Electoral College as a safeguard and empowered state legislatures to ensure the integrity of our unique election system. Yet before the 2020 election, rationalized in some instances by the occasion of the novel coronavirus pandemic, the constitutional authority of state legislatures was simply usurped by various governors, state courts, state election officials, and others.”
“Dear Democratic Colleague,
“At a time when the pandemic is ravaging our country, we must all come together to crush this virus. Up until now, the President has refused to lead our country in that way and now more than 15 million Americans have been infected and nearly 300,000 killed – more Americans than died in combat in World War II. It is imperative that our nation comes together to protect the lives and livelihoods of the American people. Instead, Republicans are engaged in election subversion that imperils our democracy.
“This week, 126 House Republicans, nearly two-thirds of the GOP Conference, signed onto an extreme partisan lawsuit demanding that the will of voters in four states – Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin – be overturned and that the Electoral College votes be awarded to Donald Trump.
“This lawsuit is an act of flailing GOP desperation, which violates the principles enshrined in our American Democracy. As the Pennsylvania Attorney General stated in a brief filed against this lawsuit, “The Court should not abide this seditious abuse of the judicial process, and should send a clear and unmistakable signal that such abuse must never be replicated.”
“As Members of Congress, we take a solemn oath to support and defend the Constitution. Republicans are subverting the Constitution by their reckless and fruitless assault on our democracy which threatens to seriously erode public trust in our most sacred democratic institutions, and to set back our progress on the urgent challenges ahead.
“Thank you for your patriotism.
“NANCY”
