Media

Committee on House Administration Ranking Member Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) appeared on C-SPAN Newsmakers this weekend to discuss election security, his bipartisan bill to prevent foreign interference in elections: the Honest Elections Act, the current state of impeachment and how it affects Congress' ability to legislate, and more. You can watch the full interview by clicking here

Committee on House Administration Ranking Member Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) released reactions from several influential groups who have expressed their concerns with the Democrats' partisan election security bill, H.R. 4617, the SHIELD Act and the negative effects it will have on Americans' right to free speech. Groups include: American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Americans for Prosperity, Eagle Forum, Freedom Works, Heritage Action, March for Life, National Right to Life Committee, Republican National Lawyers Association (RNLA).

"The type of interference we saw in the 2016 presidential election with Russia's misinformation campaign is unacceptable, which is why I'm putting forth the Honest Elections Act. Our bill is designed to fight nefarious actors from intruding in our elections without infringing on Americans' right to free speech or requiring unworkable standards for digital communications," said Ranking Member Davis.

The bill aims at preventing foreign interference in our election systems but falls short of accomplishing that goal by failing to address the primary method Russia used to influence the 2016 Presidential election, as well as inflicting broad requirements for online advertisements that will have a chilling effect on free speech and mandating more overreach from the federal government in our elections.

"I am requesting that the FEC Inspector General investigate potential violations of federal ethics regulations by the Chair Ellen L. Weintraub, such as: her use of official government time and resources for ideological, political purposes; her continued appearances in national media to discuss matters outside the purview of the FEC; and her refusal to recuse herself from any Matters Under Review involving President Trump, despite the apparent conflict of interest between the Chair’s nonpartisan position at the FEC and the use of her official Twitter account to publicly disparage the President," said Ranking Member Davis.

"My hope is that the discussion in the hearing will open the eyes of my Democratic colleagues to these concerns. Davis went on to say, “Election officials across the U.S. must ensure that a chain of custody is established and documented for all vote-by-mail ballots in order to avoid even the appearance of impropriety. I encourage all election officials, state legislatures, and my colleagues across the aisle in Washington to look at the steps Arizona's state legislature has proactively taken to protect the integrity of its elections from this easily corruptible practice and consider implementing similar safeguards in their states.”

"During the field hearing in Arizona, the Subcommittee on Elections should examine the ways Arizona has worked to protect ballots of its citizens, like the state's prohibition on ballot harvesting."

"Last month, I sent a letter to the FEC about my concerns of partisan behavior by some at the agency and how that threatens to undermine the overall mission of the Commission. It is alarming to me that the commissioners are not even in agreement in their responses as to what is the basic mission of the FEC. In several instances, the commissioners submitted different and even contrary responses to my inquiries," said Ranking Member Davis.