Last month, Georgia’s governor and legislature pushed through a massive voter-suppression omnibus bill. Georgia Republicans remain mad as hell that their state now has two Democratic senators, and that Joe Biden won the state by a narrow margin. Georgia Republicans want to ensure that Black folks are not allowed to vote freely in their state ever again, and the new voter-suppression laws represent some of the most historic voter disenfranchisement since the Jim Crow era. In the weeks that followed, corporations based in Georgia (like Coca-Cola) have faced public pressure to disavow the GOP’s now-codified racism. Major League Baseball was also under pressure to move their All-Star game out of Atlanta, which they did several days ago. The MLB All-Star game will now take place in Colorado. During yesterday’s press briefing with White House press secretary Jen Psaki, a Fox News douche tried to make “Colorado has bad laws” into a thing:
If you’ve yet to tune into the White House’s daily press briefings, something you may not know is that they regularly feature Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy asking inane questions that simply serve to further fact-free Republican talking points, or complaining of discrimination because the president didn’t call on him. On Tuesday, Doocy did get to pose a question to White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, and he used his time to suggest that Major League Baseball shouldn‘t have moved the All-Star Game from Georgia in protest of the state’s new highly restrictive voting law, i.e. conservatives’ bad-faith argument du jour. And, as is typically the case of a Doocy-style inquiry, Psaki was having none of it.
“Is the White House concerned that Major League Baseball is moving their All-Star Game to Colorado where voting regulations are very similar to Georgia?” Doocy asked, a question predicated on bullsh-t. To which Psaki responded, rhetorically stuffing the Fox News correspondent in a locker: “Well, let me just refute the first point you made. First let me say on Colorado, Colorado allows you to you register on Election Day. Colorado has voting by mail where they send to 100% of people in the state who are eligible, applications to vote by mail; 94% of people in Colorado voted by mail in the 2020 election. They also allow for a range of materials to provide, even if they vote on Election Day, for the limited number of people who vote on Election Day.”
“I think it’s important to remember the context here: The Georgia legislation is built on a lie. There was no widespread fraud in the 2020 election. Georgia’s top Republican election officials have acknowledged that repeatedly in interviews. What there was, however, was record-setting turnout, especially by voters of color. Instead what we’re seeing here for politicians who didn’t like the outcome is they’re not changing their policies to win more votes, they’re changing the rules to exclude more voters, and we certainly see the circumstances as different. Ultimately, though, it’s up to Major League Baseball to determine where they’re holding their All-Star Game.”
As Daniel Dale (via VF) pointed out, Colorado actually has one of the better voting systems in the country, and the state has a really high voter-participation record. Colorado sends ballots to every registered voter, Colorado doesn’t require a photo-ID (any kind of identification will do) and Colorado has same-day voter registration on Election Day. And for people who do want to vote in person on Election Day, if those people are standing in line, you can hand out food and water to them, unlike Georgia. Georgia has none of those provisions because they want to make it harder for people to vote. It’s that simple. There was no voter fraud, there was only white aggrievement and racism. Oh, and when corporations – like MLB – make business decisions to NOT align themselves with racism and fascism, suddenly Republicans whine about “getting corporations out of politics,” which is… pretty rich.
PETER DOOCY: Is the WH concerned MLB is moving their All Star Game to Colorado, where voting rules are very similar to Georgia?
PSAKI: Let me refute that. CO has same-day registration, universal mail voting… it's important to remember the context. The GA bill is built on a lie pic.twitter.com/TaDLU0mYNP
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 6, 2021
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
Jen is my crush – smart, savvy, warm, and calm. She handles her job so well. I want to be her when I grow up, and I’m older than her!
Me, too! And I am a 38 year old professor! LOL.
➕💯. I just love her. I try not to miss a briefing on C-SPAN. Jan —- you go girl!
I hope Stacy Abrams takes this “bill” all the way to the Supreme Court. It needs to be taken down and swiftly. It’s worse then all the gerrymandering done to control how local and state candidates twist voting results.
Plus, she’s GORGEOUS!
Honestly, she’s like the real-live version of C.J. Cregg from The West Wing, which is freaking AWESOME!
I love her. I love how she doesn’t even try to deal with their bullsht. She just presents facts and moves on.
This lady is awesome. Just facts. No nonsense.
Whip-smart, savvy, and totally prepped to destroy right-wing bullshit – is there anything not to love about this goddess?
I love how quick she is, and how wonky she is about policy. She packed a lot of information into 1 response!
she got him together REAL quick. lol
Pretty sure CO also doesn’t have a ridiculous rule making it illegal to give food to people in voting lines. That’s the most outrageous element in the bill, imo. I’ve blocked at least 3 Trumpsters for supporting this. They were “Christians” too. I could not believe their defenses. “If you don’t bring your own food, that’s your problem.” “Dems are bribing people in lines with food. This bill is just trying to stop that.” Freaking absurd.
That argument is so insane to me. If people are willing to wait in line for upwards of 6 hours (in certain districts) to have their votes count; are we really supposed to believe that their votes can so easily be bought by a mini water bottle (from Costco) and perhaps a cookie?
yes – i think it’s very similar to the Arkansas transgender law. Gender-confirming surgeries are already illegal in the state just like electioneering is already illegal in Georgia. Aside from punishing people who don’t vote for them, they are just riling their base over issues that already have laws.
Escondista- where did you read/hear that gender confirmation surgery was already illegal in Arkansas? Is this for everyone or just transgender youth?
@Rapunzel, I believe i heard it on NPR yesterday. I am not sure if it was actually previously law but gender confirming surgery isn’t performed on any minors in the state of Arkansas.
I don’t think i can edit my previous statement however it still stands that these lawmakers are riling their base and wasting time on laws that actively hurt those that need help the most AND creating laws that have very little basis on that actual needs of their state. They are selling this as stopping teenagers from doing something that they are not…actually…doing?
For the five people who actually stand in line on election day, we serve them microbrews and Rocky Mountain oysters.
IIRC, Colorado had 13 confirmed cases of voter fraud between the institution of universal mail voting in 2013 and the 2020 election. Not bad for a state with almost 6 million people.
The food/water thing really gets me too. Food and water pose NO THREAT to the integrity of the voting system. It is so arbitrary, and the only point is to make things harder for people trying to vote. It is such an obvious method of voter obstruction.
I love how she stays so calm in the face of the Fox News BS. Good for her.
And yes, Republicans, elections have consequences and corporations and capitalism are good things, remember?? So if MLB wants to move the All Star Game from Georgia, they are perfectly free to do so.
Becks1- yep. These GOP folks are so insane.
Starbucks puts “Happy holidays” on a cup= boycott.
Target also transgender folks to use the appropriate bathroom=boycott
MLB decides it does like GA and is moving to CO= evil cancel culture, but also…boycott. But also= we can’t have businesses doing this.
It’s absurd. I had a Trumpster I blocked for ranting about the MLB and how it shouldn’t move from GA in protest because…. they require ID to pick up tixs at willcall? Somehow, this is an example of “hypocritical leftist policies”? The MLB is deep state radical Dems or something? IDK, I just blocked. I’m sick of the nonsense.
Agreed. There is so much cognitive dissonance. iM CaNCeLiNg CAnCeL CuLTuRe!
They are just parroting what some angry pundit shouts on the conservative talk shows.
And Mitch McTurtle coming out in response to the MLB and saying businesses should stay out of politics? Ummmm….excuse me? I thought corporations were “people” hence them being allowed to make huge campaign contributions. So their money is acceptable but not their opinions or their right to take their business wherever they want in protest of policies they don’t support? Got it.
Edited to add that I came straight to the comments because I had already read about this elsewhere and I didn’t see Kaiser’s final point until after I initially posted my comment. Oops lol
What Republican state legislatures (such as mine in Texas) are doing is making it harder to vote if you are in a city, working class, disabled, elderly or minority. I know there are some Republican voters in those groups so they want to cut off their nose to spite their face because they are so mad they lost but refuse to blame it on their platform snd instead are continuing the big lie. I feel helpless. Hoping it can be overturned by the courts but since republicans (smartly, I admit) packed the courts I’m discouraged.
Doesn’t this Doocy doofus ever get embarrassed? I’d feel for Ms. Psaki having to deal with this guy every day, but she’s got it. She can handle anyone & anything. I’m taking notes, because I absolutely aspire to be like Jen under pressure.
Isn’t this the same guy who whined that he didn’t get called on enough? Happy now, sir?
She is the antidote to the parade of ignorant, unprofessional ass clowns of the trump admin
Georgia voters saved this nation from fascism. We owe Georgia voters so much. Atlanta metro deserves the economic boon of the all star game and fk the state legislature for this! /rant
Kind of a great point, Bettyrose. I’m on the fence about this because the boycott hurts actual people in GA, not just politicians, and those are the people who saved our butts in November.
And again in January when they sent two Dems to the Senate, giving VP Harris the tie breaking vote.
I agree bettyrose, and I’m not from GA, so feel free to ignore, but I did see some folks saying that the stadium isn’t actually in Atlanta, but in a suburb, so it might not be those voters who benefit from the game being there anyway.
She should get a bonus every time she has to interact with Doocey. He’s an idiot. Though, to be honest, most of the WH press corps are embarrassing themselves in these pressers. It’s painfully obvious they miss Trump and all his insanity, stupidity and cruelty.
Right?! Even reporters that you think of as reasonable are asking stupid questions trying to gin up some fake controversy. Psaki is a treasure! I can’t get enough of her 💗
…am I the only person who thought his name was actually “Peter Douchey”? No? Just me?
She’s such a badass.
Every day I hate Republicans more and more. I didn’t think that was possible. I’m a diplomatic genius in my family lol. I can level playing fields and stand behind every person and every argument with logical and pragmatic precision in order to keep the peace and love flowing. 😁 But damn. If someone in my family disparages anybody, or a group of people, for comedic or any reason really, I’ve always shut that shit down. Fast. No discussion either. I will not have a conversation about why racism in all its forms (micro to macro), misogyny, bigotry, basically all forms of oppression is wrong. My children are grown. I’ve taught them and nothing is left to be said. And they know it. And they live it. But my hate the last five years has seen more daylight than the whole of my life and the lives of my ancestors lol. They. Are. Vile. They deserve nothing. No platforms. No air time. No print. No publication. They are hate personified, and they need to be extinguished.
I believe that it what is called a Psaki Bomb. lol
Well done!
Why do people have to stand in line for hours to vote in the US? Is it not enough polling stations or do you have to spend ages in there or both? Here in the UK there are polling stations everywhere (church halls, school building, etc.) and you’re in and out in a couple of minutes.
A result of RepubliSCUM rule.
Local authorities can decide what locations can be used as polling places and historically, Republicans often choose to have very few stations in minority areas. It’s not done on a strictly population density basis.
Not everyone does, it depends on where you live. It wouldn’t take me longer in line than a minute usually, although I usually hang out and visit with the workers and neighbors. It is about 10 miles from my house. Most rural places in my state are at a town hall. We switched from the cutest old one room school house to the highway department for better handicapped access a few years back. Many towns use school buildings. In regards to providing food, that’s one of the reasons to hang out, lots of homemade treats people bring in to share. It makes me so mad that it is not the same everywhere. I’d expect to have a line in a city, but a reasonable one.
I’m both happy and still grieving the time we had to deal with terrible, lying, hide in the bushes, biased, pandering, a-holes as Press Secretary’s for the White House. Thank you Jen and I hope as time goes on, I heal more and more from the last 5 years (pre-election trauma too).
The fact that this second-generation Fox reporter (sic) asks a question about MLB (something the WH has literally nothing to do with) tells you everything they need to know.
They are desperate to get their talking points out anywhere and will use time that is supposed to be for questions about WH policy and decisions to push unrelated lies.
Nice (sic)! Snort.
She is fabulous!!! Never vote Republican
I love her so much. What a refreshing breath of fresh air, sweeping out the noxious & toxic fumes left by the chump disadministration. #TeamPsaki
All of my C.J. Cregg dreams have finally come true! ❤
They call it a Psaki bomb. I’m totally in love with her.
I live in CO and it is so easy to vote here. If you’re already registered your ballot just shows up in the mail, most of the time with literature explaining key points that are being voted on, and you can mail it back or drop it off at many local drop off boxes. As long as your signature matches what they have on file you’re good. You can even track your ballot online right up until they tally it. Instances of voter fraud are very low. What would be so bad about every state having a similar system? I used to live in Wisconsin and I heard stories of friends waiting in line for hours to vote and it seems to archaic in this day and age to have to do that when we have so may resources at our disposable for safe mail-in voting.
I’m 47 and have voted in every Presidential and mid-term election I’ve been eligible for – I have voted in person exactly once, in college, for Bill Clinton’s first term. After that, Oregon went to an all mail vote and it is the most convenient thing ever, as you laid out above. The only thing I’d add is that voting at home lets you take your time with it. You can read up on everything and double check your ballot before you send it. No worries about anyone behind you or remembering names correctly or what-have-you. No fuss, no muss. I’d throw an unholy sh*tfit at this point if I had to start voting in person.