Cooler Heads Prevail: Senate Rule Fostering Bipartisan Cooperation Survives Partisan Attack

Press Release

A bipartisan majority of senators thwarted Democrats' scheme to permanently destroy centuries-old Senate rules to advance a federal takeover of state election laws. The rule requiring 60 votes to end debate fosters compromise and bipartisanship, ensuring all senators, regardless of party, can participate in the legislative process. The election takeover effort has long been a liberal policy priority that would force states to abandon popular election safeguards.

"Iowans at my 99 county meetings often share their frustration about the partisanship in Washington. They want to see us work together on meaningful, commonsense solutions. That's exactly what the Senate's 60 vote rules are designed to promote: thorough debate and collaboration where all points of view are heard and amendments are considered. Eliminating such a rule to force a partisan federal takeover of state election authorities enshrined in our Constitution turns the "World's Greatest Deliberative Body' on its head and guarantees a more partisan, divisive environment in the future. I'm pleased that cooler heads prevailed and Democrats were prevented from deploying this "nuclear option,'" Grassley said.

The Nuclear Option
Efforts to reduce the Senate's threshold to cut off debate from the current 60 votes to a simple majority by establishing a precedent to ignore a rule without actually amending the rules is such a controversial procedure that it's often referred to as the "nuclear option" because it would empower future majorities to ignore any rule and thus carries lasting consequences that eventually harm all members from both political parties.

Sen. Grassley has consistently warned of the perils of deploying the nuclear option, correctly predicted the fallout from rules changes and resisted changes even when his own political party would have immediately benefited.

The Election Takeover
Despite several conservative states adopting new election laws that grant greater flexibility than many liberal states like New York and President Biden's home state of Delaware, and despite record turnout in recent elections that resulted in victories for both political parties, Democrats continue to falsely claim that democracy is in crisis. President Biden even suggested that future elections should be called into question if the partisan election takeover is unsuccessful. This document debunks some of the most egregious myths being peddled by Democrats to justify their election takeover.

Their partisan proposal would have superseded many popular state laws that make it easy to vote and hard to cheat. Among other provisions the bill includes:
Undermines most current state voter ID laws -- replaces state voter ID laws with a federal voter ID standard that would require states to accept essentially any document that includes a person's name. Iowa sends a free voter ID to any voter that does not already have a driver's license.
Automatic Voter Registration -- requires state departments of motor vehicles to register voters unless the state opts out. The Motor Voter Law already requires giving the option to register to everyone who goes to the DMV so this would automatically register people who opted not to register previously. States that have this have accidentally registered a lot of non-citizens.
Mandates the use of ballot drop-boxes -- requires states to provide drop-boxes while not providing any security or chain of custody requirements. Drop-boxes were not thought necessary until an irresponsible conspiracy theory was floated casting doubt on voting by mail and impugning the integrity of the Postal Service. Iowa requires a secure drop box at every county auditor and allows for no-excuse absentee voting by mail with barcodes on envelopes that expedite their delivery and allow Iowans to track their ballot online.

Federalizes Redistricting -- federalizes the rules for redistricting by requiring that states adhere to federal redistricting standards subject to enforcement actions by the attorney general. This could force Iowa to change its respected nonpartisan redistricting process.
Provides government funding for campaigns -- provides public financing in the form of both a 6:1 federal match for small donations to candidates for the House of Representatives, and a "Democracy Credit" program in which people can request a $25 credit they can donate to one or more candidates for the House of Representatives. The candidates will then be paid by the participating state, and the state will be reimbursed by the federal government. State participation is voluntary, but the Federal Election Commission is required to set up the program using federal dollars for any state that chooses to participate. This means that federal dollars will still be going to candidates who citizens may not support.

Requires felon voting -- requires states to give felons the right to vote once they're out of prison.
Chills free speech -- contains burdensome speech-chilling disclosure requirements, including disclosure of donors to nonprofit groups that express views on candidates but do not give campaign contributions.

Turns the FEC General Counsel into the speech czar -- allows the unelected, unconfirmed Federal Elections Commission General Counsel to make decisions for the FEC such as when to investigate and what penalties will be assessed unless four commissioners vote to overturn the GC's decision within 30 days.

Creates a presidential slush fund for activities that "promote democracy" -- another example of Democrats using taxpayer dollars for elections.

Makes Election Day a federal holiday -- grants federal employees an additional taxpayer-funded paid holiday, yet most Iowans don't get federal holidays off. Voting in person in Iowa is fast and efficient, and voters can also vote absentee or early.

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