Burger King had a jingle that they used, actually quite successfully, to woo fast food burger eaters away from Mickey D's, back in the mid '70s. They prided themselves in giving you what you wanted, your way. Check it out.
Well, it seems that good ol' Eric Cantor, the Virginian representative, finds himself in a bit of a pickle. You see, his party has gotten ginned up a bit on making voter rights, some of which the SCOTUS had limited in striking down Article V of the 1965 Voter Rights Act, an issue once again. Despite years of intentionally trying to tamp down minority voters, a few Republicans have joined in with some progressive Democrats and are pushing for a new voter rights bill in Congress. With this being a big election year, the GOP doesn't want to come across as anti-voter, even if they are. They want to keep the House and maybe even recapture the Senate. To do that they need minority voters who want their legal right to vote, something the GOP has actively pursued taking away.
With a seemingly bi-partisan backing, Cantor is stuck now that specific legislation has been introduced with the backing of several prominent Republicans. If he comes out against the bill and refuses to let it go to the floor for a vote, he's going to look like he's not supporting voting rights for all legal citizens. And if he comes out for the bill, the right wing, Tea Party nuts will pick on him and possibly even back a challenger for the House Majority leader. In other words, he could get primaried in his state or replaced as majority leader in the House. Yikes. Cantor, the Burger King could become Ronald MacDonald the Clown -- or worse, the Hamburgler.
The good news for Cantor is this, according to The Hill:
There are compelling reasons for Cantor to get on board. As the majority leader, Cantor is on the front lines of the fight to increase the GOP’s control over the lower chamber in November. Republican leaders won't want to be seen blocking a bill designed to protect voters – particularly one with bipartisan support – especially at a time where they’re trying to expand their party’s minority outreach.
The bill also includes a sweetener for Virginians. Under the old provisions shot down by the Supreme Court, the Old Dominion was one of nine states with histories of voter discrimination required to get federal approval before they changed their election procedures. Under the new proposal – which aims to update the formula dictating which states are subject to the extra scrutiny – only four states would be forced to seek such approval. Virginia is not among them.
Oh, in case you're interested, the four states that would fall under the additional scrutiny are: Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Georgia – all GOP strongholds. And they're all states working to tighten voter registration laws. Therein lies the rub, or the pickle.
What will Cantor do? America wants it their way -- voting rights for all legal citizens. Will Cantor give people what they want, or force them into going somewhere else? Mr. Majority Leader, have it your way.
The post Hold The Pickle, Hold The Lettuce, Eric Cantor, Don't Forget Us appeared first on The Political Carnival.