Democrats' and mainstream media's dismissal of Georgia's election reform laws as "Jim Crow on steroids" is not just patently false, Georgia Attorney General Christopher Carr told Newsmax, but a "fake outrage circus" and "morally reprehensible."
"Has anyone in Washington actually read this bill? It's unbelievable," Carr said while appearing Thursday on "Spicer & Co."
"This fake outrage circus came to town, and nobody knew what they were talking about," he told co-hosts Sean Spicer and Lyndsay Keith. "Again, our bill, our law, provides for more security and transparency and access, and that's why we're going to win in court."
The Justice Department has sued the state of Georgia for its constitutionally passed election reform measures, suggesting the laws discriminate and suppress the vote. But Carr rejected the rhetoric as a weapon to attempt to federalize elections with Congress' HR1, which passed the House, and SR1, which failed in a 50-50 vote in the Senate.
"To say that this is Jim Crow 2.0, or Jim Crow on steroids is to me, again, morally reprehensible," Carr said, referring to President Joe Biden's criticism of the state's election reform bills. "We're talking about an era in American history where people were being murdered and truly prohibited from voting.
"Look at the bill. It expands access and transparency for everybody, Republicans and Democrats. So, to say this is just absolutely irresponsible."
Carr labeled the lawsuit a political weapon.
"But what this is about, Sean and Lindsay: politics," Carr continued. "Georgia is the center of the political universe, probably will be in '22 as well, but also the federalization of elections through HR1. The Senate can't get its bill passed. Why? Because it infringes on the constitutionally protected right of states and localities to run their own elections. This should bother all Americans. It's pure politics, and so is the DOJ lawsuit."
If Democrats in Congress do find a way for the federal government to take over elections, Carr expects Constitution-loving Republican state attorneys general to pick up the fight to keep their constitutional rights.
"I'm confident that my Republican AG colleagues and I will take a hard look at it," Carr vowed. "And again, we're the last line of defense on so much overreach — and everything coming out of Washington right now is federalization of elections, unions, the economy, taxation, healthcare, you name it.
"That's what they're trying to do, and that's why we're pushing back."
Carr did make clear Georgia's latest move to permit the state to review local election boards' failings in elections and take domain over them is not designed to be unilateral, and it will only come if localities fail to conduct free, fair, and secure elections.
Biden's claims at a CNN Town Hall on Wednesday night were "simply false."
"If local boards aren't doing their job, the state board can come in — after a process that is done based on due process — can take over and make sure it's done right," Carr said. "Now, why is that important?
"Because in 2018, Democrats complained about long lines and boards not doing their job. In 2020, Republicans complained about it.
"But no, the Legislature cannot come in and take over the election. That is simply false."
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Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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