Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) ominously warned Friday on “The Rachel Maddow Show” that Georgia’s assault on voting rights is a “defining moment” for democracy and for all U.S. citizens.
“Let me be very clear ... if you think this is something happening down in Georgia, you are misapprehending the moment that we’re living in,” he said.
“If you think that this is something happening to Black voters, you still don’t quite clearly understand,” he added. “This is a defining moment for American democracy. If this is happening in the state Capitol in Georgia, it will not take very long for it to visit a state capitol near you.”
Among several provisions making it more difficult to vote, Georgia’s new law creates stricter voter identification requirements for absentee balloting, limits drop boxes for ballots, imposes shorter early voting hours and makes it a crime to offer food or water to voters waiting in line at the polls.
President Joe Biden called the draconian voting restrictions “an atrocity” and “Jim Crow in the 21st Century.”
Warnock said that while the law has devastating implications for Black voters, “in a real sense this is about something much more profound.”
“It is about whether we are who we say we are. Either we’re a democracy or we’re not. Either we believe in the idea of one person, one vote, or we don’t. Either I’m a citizen or I’m not.”
The battle is about “politicians who are trying to hold on to power. That’s what this is,” Warnock told Maddow. “It’s a power struggle, and they’ve decided that they’re going to hold on to power no matter what, even if it costs the democracy itself.”
The only ones who can correct this “are the people themselves, and so we’ve all got to stand up, say no to this,” he added. “History is watching us, and our children are counting on us.”
Check out Warnock’s full interview in the video up top. He begins speaking at 21:13.
