By Scott Keyes
The Supreme Court struck down an Arizona voter suppression law in a surprise move Monday, but one Republican senator is already trying to work around that decision.
Conservative Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the 7-2 opinion in the Arizona v. Inter Tribal Council of Arizona case Monday which invalidated the state law requiring voters that prove they were citizens before registering. Such “proof of citizenship” requirements can suppress the vote by making it far more difficult for people to get registered. Aside from Arizona, four other states currently require proof of citizenship to vote, including Alabama, Georgia, Kansas, and Tennessee.
However, even Scalia’s jurisprudence is apparently too liberal for Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), who announced Monday afternoon that he will file a bill overturning the decision. As The Hill reports, Cruz will file an amendment to the Senate immigration bill that would reverse the decision and allow states to require proof of citizenship in order to register and vote.
Cruz also warned on his Facebook page that Monday’s decision “encourages voter fraud,” despite the fact that you are far more likely to be struck by lightning than to commit voter fraud.
