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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Government Reform
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Impeachment is now about the rule of law
I think every day that passes the pressure to impeach grows and I think that it's justifiable. The evidence continues to come in and with the president now saying that he is willing to break the law to win re-election,
that transcends partisanship, it transcends party lines and this is now about the rule of law in the United States of America.
Source: ABC This Week 2019 interview on impeaching Trump
, Jun 16, 2019
First pledge to voters: clean up campaign finances
The Citizens United ruling is centered around the notion that money is speech and that corporations are people. This idea is far from any reasonable interpretation of the Constitution, and is deeply harmful to the institutions of social democracy.
Not only does this situation favor those with extreme wealth, but also discourages those who are less privileged from even considering a run. The first pledge Alexandria made to voters in this election was to commit herself to clean campaign finance. ÿ
Source: 2018 Congressional NY-14th election website Ocasio2018.com
, Oct 9, 2018
Puerto Ricans suffer neglect from not having a federal vote
Q: You say that there is a "modern-day colonial relationship that the United States has with Puerto Rico" and that "Puerto Ricans are technically American citizens, but they do not have the right to vote." You mean they don't have the right to vote for
members of the House that can vote on the floor, and they don't have two senators, because, obviously, they have the right to vote.OCASIO-CORTEZ: Puerto Ricans have no right to vote in federal elections. They cannot choose a president.
They do not have a representative vote in the House or the Senate, which means that they did not even have the capacity to choose for this president, yet they continue to suffer at the hands of this administration. And, for that reason, you do have
the chronic neglect of the island. And it is acute situations like [the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, in which 3,000 died] in which Puerto Ricans continue to be treated like second-class citizens.
Source: CNN 2018 interviews for Congress NY-14 election
, Sep 16, 2018
PVS:Regulate campaign donations from corporations.
Ocasio-Cortez supports the PVS survey question on regulating campaign donations
Project Vote Smart inferred whether candidates agree or disagree with the statement, 'Campaign Finance: Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions?'
PVS self-description: "The Political Courage Test provides voters with positions on key issues. Historically, candidates have failed to complete our test due to the advice they receive from their advisors and out of fear of negative attack ads."
Source: PVS Survey 18PVS-16 on Aug 1, 2018
Holiday on election day; revamp for easier voting access.
Ocasio-Cortez voted YEA For the People Act of 2019
- This bill expands voter registration and voting access, makes Election Day a federal holiday, and limits removing voters from voter rolls.
- The bill provides for states to establish independent, nonpartisan redistricting commissions.
- The bill also sets forth provisions for sharing intelligence information with state election officials, and supporting states in securing their election systems, and establishing the National Commission to Protect U.S. Democratic Institutions.
- This bill addresses campaign spending, by expanding the ban on foreign nationals contributing to or spending on elections; and expanding disclosure rules.
- This bill establishes an alternative campaign funding system [with] federal matching of small contributions for qualified candidates.
- The bill also requires candidates for President and Vice President to submit 10 years of tax returns.
Opposing argument from the Heritage Foundation, 2/1/2019: HR1 federalizes and micromanages
the election process administered by the states, imposing unnecessary mandates on the states and reversing the decentralization of the American election process. What HR1 Would Do:- Seize the authority of states to regulate the voting process by forcing states to implement early voting, automatic voter registration, same-day registration, online voter registration, and no-fault absentee balloting.
- Make it easier to commit fraud at the polls through same-day registration, as election officials have no time to verify the accuracy of voter registration.
- Degrade the accuracy of registration lists by automatically registering individuals from state databases, such as DMV.
- Cripple the effectiveness of state voter ID laws by allowing individuals to vote without an ID and merely signing a statement in which they claim they are who they say they are.
Legislative outcome: Passed House 234-193-5 on 3/8/19; received with no action in Senate thru 12/31/2019
Source: Congressional vote 19-S949 on Jan 3, 2019
Page last updated: Dec 25, 2020