I was disappointed to read the Aug. 7 letter “Trump’s attacks on voting rights” by Westmoreland County Commissioner Gina Cerilli. Her assertion that President Trump is in any way trying to subvert any individual from his or her constitutional right to vote is absurd.
Cerilli cited the 2013 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that “gutted” the 1965 Voting Rights Act. In that action, during the Obama administration, the court only ruled on Section 4 of the VRA and decided it represented unconstitutional violations of power to regulate elections. The court chose not to legislate from the bench, stating the needed changes to the VRA needed to come from Congress.
The Obama administration’s attempt to force onerous complications upon Southern voting districts was an attempt to disrupt the election process. The Trump administration is now trying to enforce the election laws.
While I echo Cerilli’s voice in the importance of our vote, surely she will work to ensure all citizens who are legally permitted to cast their vote do so in a lawful manner. Then we all win.
Doug Baughman
Hempfield