On November 24th, The Sharon Herald offered the following editorial chastising Congressman Mike Kelly for signing on to a lawsuit attempting to throw out all "no-excuse" mail-in ballots in the November 3rd election. Read it on The Herald's site or below:
OPINION: Voters should remember Kelly's shameful attempt to subvert democracy U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, a Republican from Butler, cruised to his sixth consecutive term on Nov. 3 by a nearly 2-1 margin. Obviously, Kelly has done a lot that voters in his conservative 16th Congressional District like. But here's one thing they shouldn't like, regardless of their politics: A lawsuit Kelly filed Saturday in the Commonwealth Court that would throw out more than 2 million votes cast by the people of Pennsylvania. With that post-game Hail Mary pass, Kelly joined the rest of President Donald Trump's A-team, desperately seeking to undo Democrat Joe Biden's victory with baseless lawsuits in key battleground states. Many Republicans, gradually and grudgingly, have accepted Trump's defeat, while others, including Kelly, have continued to drink the Kool-Aid, no matter what the cost to democracy. Even among a flurry of frivolous post-election lawsuits, most of which were quickly tossed, Kelly's suit stands out for its reckless disregard for his constituents' constitutional rights. Scrapping Act 77, a year after Pennsylvania's GOP-controlled General Assembly overwhelmingly approved it, would disenfranchise more than 2 million mail voters in the Nov. 3 election. Without legal precedent or moral principle, Kelly argues Act. 77, signed into law in October of 2019, is invalid because it authorized expanding mail voting without a constitutional amendment. The suit ignores that Pennsylvania prohibits constitutional challenges after six months. Moreover, nothing in the state, or U.S., Constitution restricts the Pennsylvania General Assembly from expanding mail-in voting without a ballot referendum. On the contrary, the constitution, historically, has expanded suffrage and eliminated barriers to voting. Kelly's lawsuit also calls for sweeping and draconian remedies no judge of sound mind would approve – without compelling evidence of significant and decisive fraud or error that no state or county election official in Pennsylvania has reported or alleged. The suit asks the court to prohibit election results that include mail ballots; or, alternatively, to throw out all the votes and authorize state legislators to choose delegates to award the state's 20 electoral votes. Either of those so-called remedies would snatch the election out of the people's hands. They suggest Kelly's allegiance to the president outweighs his commitment to his constituents, and the sanctity of the vote. With no chance to prevail, the suit can serve only to further erode trust in government by de-legitimizing the 2020 presidential election. In a post-election interview, Kelly stated the law, not media projections, would determine the election. In truth, the voters determined it more than two weeks ago. The people have spoken; like it or not, Kelly should have listened. His record has already been tarnished by an overbearing, if inconsequential, act of partisanship that voters should not forget. The two Georgia Senate races were special elections. The rules state that if no candidate gets 50% of the vote, there will be a runoff election on January 5, 2021 between the two top candidates in each race. The Democrat candidates in the runoff are Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff. If we want to take back control from Mitch McConnell, and ensure that Joe Biden will be able to sign much needed legislation, we need to help win those seats! And, we need to do it ASAP! The Federal Election Commission (FEC) deadline for reporting campaign donations is December 1st.
Donations Jon Ossoff through Act Blue https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ms_hp_ossoff, or mail a check payable to "Jon Ossoff for Senate" to P.O. Box 450326, Atlanta, GA 31145 Rev. Raphael Warnock through ActBlue: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/warnock-for-georgia_web, or mail a check payable to “Warnock for Georgia” to PO Box 991, Decatur, GA 30031 Fair Fight, Stacey Abram's voting rights organization that has been extremely successful in registering voters and getting out the vote in Georgia, through secure.actblue.com/donate/fair-fight-1, or mail a check payable to Fair Fight to 1270 Caroline St., Ste. D120-311, Atlanta, GA 30307. Phone Bank For Jon Ossoff: https://www.mobilize.us/electjon/event/362688 For Rev. Raphael Warnock: https://secure.warnockforgeorgia.com/page/s/website_vol Write letters or postcards Visit https://votefwd.org/ or https://www.gapostcard.org/ and watch for information to be posted soon on how you can get involved. The Democrats can win these seats! We need them if we want to preserve and expand access to healthcare for all Americans; if we want to protect Social Security; if we want to promote infrastructure and alternative energy jobs and innovations; if we want to create a brighter future for America. |