Issue One Founder and CEO calls for action following President Biden’s voting rights speech

Following today’s remarks by President Joe Biden on the need for Senate action on critical democracy reforms, Issue One Founder and CEO Nick Penniman issued the following statement:

“We are living through a defining moment in our country’s history. The same anti-democratic forces that have plagued other democracies are advancing in ours. In our lifetimes, the stakes for freedom and self-governance have never been higher.

“There are some moments in our country when there’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to take giant steps towards a more perfect union, and this is one of those moments. We must seize it.

“Will the Washington establishment muster the energy to act? Will Republicans bring their own ideas to the table instead of blocking the ideas of the other party? Anti-democratic forces are betting on inaction. We can’t allow that to happen. The cynics are saying that nothing can get done. We must prove them wrong by passing sweeping reforms like the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.

“State legislatures across the country are passing laws to put partisans in charge of elections and overturn results of free and fair elections — that’s what losing our democracy looks like. Congress needs to realize that this moment is bigger than politics as usual. Republicans need to move beyond obstruction and towards presenting constructive ideas. Unless Democrats reform the filibuster, they have to be flexible enough to listen to those ideas. Both sides must move beyond partisanship and do what previous generations of Americans have done — do whatever it takes to save our democracy and safeguard it from those who wish to subvert it.”