Friends and neighbors,
I hope you and your family weathered the snowstorm and are staying safe. This week at the Capitol, the Democrat majority made their public safety priorities known: giving convicted felons the right to vote – no matter their crime – and allowing non-citizens the right to a driver’s license with no safeguards in place.
Allowing Convicted Felons to Vote
On Tuesday, Feb. 21, the Senate first took up the Democrats’ bill, SF 26, to allow violent criminals, including rapists and murderers, who are still on probation to vote. Before the passage of this bill, felons in our state could not vote until they have served their probation or parole and paid all fines connected to their sentence. Senate Republicans offered amendments to require at least a two-year waiting period for voting rights to be restored, regardless of probation length. Additionally, we offered amendments to prevent certain egregious violent criminals, and those convicted of a felony for voter fraud, from reclaiming their right to vote until their full sentence – both incarceration and probation – is completed.
However, as we have seen many times throughout this session, the Senate majority accepted none of our reasonable amendments. And ultimately, the bill passed with party-line votes (34-31).
I strongly believe that it is vital for people to completely serve their penalties before having their voting rights restored. If we reestablish this right while they are still on probation, we are denying justice to victims of crime. Instead, we should be working to ensure there are fewer felons, and therefore fewer victims, by demonstrating that violent crimes will have harsh sentences.
Providing Driver’s Licenses for Non-Citizens
Later in the evening, the Democrat’s ‘Driver’s Licenses for All’ bill, SF 27, was brought up. This legislation provides non-citizens with the right to a Minnesota driver’s license with no protections for our elections or national security.
While it can be said that the bill’s intent, ensuring Minnesota’s roads are safer, is admirable. However, I could not support this legislation because of the many problematic loopholes it contains.
Under this bill, non-citizens can receive a state-issued Class D identification that is identical to a Minnesota resident’s license. This is an extreme threat to state and national security, as bad actors can use this license in many official capacities. And since REAL ID will not take effect until 2025, this license can be used to access military bases and federal buildings throughout the nation.
Further, the Driver’s Licenses for All bill will severely compromise our elections. There is a Democrat bill that’s currently moving through the Minnesota Legislature that seeks to tie automatic voter registration with a driver’s license application. And when this proposal is combined with the Driver’s Licenses for All bill, our elections will be open to potential fraud and abuse. This will only be further compounded because the Democrats’ driver’s license bill does not require data to be shared with other agencies, like the Secretary of State.
During the extensive floor debate, Senate Republicans proposed key amendments to address the lack of safeguards. However, as we saw with the felon voting legislation, the Senate majority Democrats chose not to work across the aisle and accept any Republican proposals. And ultimately, this bill passed out of the Senate on a 34-31 vote during the early hours of Wednesday, Feb. 22.
It’s become all too clear that the Democrat trifecta’s public safety agenda is not about ensuring safe communities. Their two latest bills to pass out of the Senate go against law and order. Their response to public safety is rewarding criminal behavior and opening the door to fraud and abuse.
Contact My Office
I want to hear from you, my constituents, on issues that are important to you. Please feel free to reach out to my office with any concerns or ideas you may have. I will continue to keep your thoughts and concerns in mind as legislation comes before me. You can contact my office at sen.bruce.anderson@senate.mn or 651-296-5981.
Sincerely,
Bruce Anderson