They’re mad as hell, and they’re not going to take it anymore!
Virginia Republicans are filing a lawsuit against Gov. Terry McAuliffe after he granted 200,000 convicted felons the right to vote in this fall’s election.
The GOP claims McAuliffe's actions go against the state's constitution, arguing that the main reason McAuliffe enacted this voting allowance is to ensure Hillary Clinton’s path to the White House. Clinton and McAuliffe are long-time personal friends and have supported one another's campaigns in the past.
Virginia Senate Republican Leader Thomas Norment said the following in a statement: “Gov. McAuliffe’s flagrant disregard for the Constitution of Virginia and the rule of law must not go unchecked.”
There was no specific date as to when the lawsuit would be filed.
Despite McAuliffe’s claim that the decision was not politically motivated, he did not respond to the pending lawsuit himself. The governor's spokesperson, Brian Coy, gave a statement on behalf of the governor.
“The governor is disappointed that Republicans would go to such lengths to continue locking people who have served their time out of their democracy,” Coy said. “These Virginians are qualified to vote and they deserve a voice, not more partisan schemes to disenfranchise them.”
According to the Washington Post:
The governor’s order enables every Virginia felon to vote, run for public office, serve on a jury and become a notary public if they have completed their sentence and finished any supervised release, parole or probation requirements as of April 22.
It seems as though the laws are continually changed to benefit the “victim” -- and there is always a victim. In this case, the victims are convicted felons. While those that served their time paid their debt to society and should be allowed to resume their lives, when will the laws once again begin to benefit the law-abiding citizen?