Democrats make democracy reform first bill

Senate Democrats are making a sweeping democracy reform package the first bill they plan to introduce after taking back the majority.

The bill, which is endorsed by a wide swath of progressive and civil rights groups, includes, among other things, changes to voter registration requirements, more funding for election security, requirements for presidents and vice presidents to disclose their tax returns and new ethics rules for members of Congress.

The bill would also require a code of ethics for the Supreme Court, boost public funding for presidential elections and requires new disclosures for online advertising.

But the bill faces little chance in passing the Senate even after Democrats take over the majority. Most legislation will still require 60 votes to pass and Democrats will only have 50 votes plus incoming-Vice President Kamala Harris to break a tie.

Democrats could nuke the 60-vote legislative filibuster, which would allow them to pass legislation with only 50 votes. But several members of the caucus are wary of taking such a step.

“It’s too soon to say how we’ll pursue this. I think that every American has received a message that the integrity of our elections is incredibly important and so in terms of accountability for the events of this past year there’s probably nothing more important than passing the For the People Act,” Merkley said asked if the caucus would take action on the filibuster if Republicans block the bill. LINK