WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) delivered floor remarks regarding how the Democrats' continue to push their election agenda.

To watch Senator Blackburn’s speech, click below or here.

You can read the transcript below or in the Congressional Record.

Madam President, it has been so interesting to talk

with Tennesseans over the past couple of weeks, and it is interesting

in the vein that they are beginning to really question some of the

proposals that my Democratic colleagues are bringing forward and items

that they are pushing from the left side of the aisle.

I have to tell you that I honestly can't blame them. After all, when

they promised COVID relief, they delivered a blue State bailout, which

was something that was not popular in Tennessee. They said that they

were going to be all for some much needed infrastructure projects. In

Tennessee, we like to talk about this in terms of roads and railways

and runways and rivers. Yet what did the people from Tennessee hear?

They heard all about the Green New Deal, they heard about incentives

for electric vehicles, and they heard about alternative energy. They

looked at that infrastructure bill and said: This is fantasyland.

Then, when they promised to support families and children, what did

you get from the left side of the aisle? You got support for expanding

the welfare state.

Now Senate Democrats have promised to vote on legislation that they

claim is going to make our elections more transparent. Hmm. That is

interesting. Surprising no one, the bill the Democrats are trying to

sell to the American people will do exactly the opposite.

Of course, in typical fashion of the House, what did it do? It gave

it a friendly sounding name--the For the People Act--but in actuality,

this is a bill that would take away rights and responsibilities from

the American people.

They are saying: This is going to be about transparency. Well, when

we think of transparency, we think of things that are going to be seen,

of things that are going to be easily understood. We think of things

from which the activity within is going to be made available so that

people can see this. It should follow, then, that a bill that is

promising transparent elections would be there to help voters

understand the rules, trust the people in charge, and cast their votes

of confidence. It would not be a bill that would seize control from

local officials and place it in the hands of unelected Washington

bureaucrats, and it would not be a bill that would make it literally

impossible to stand up polling places. It certainly would not be a bill

that would erode confidence in ballot integrity, but that is what we

have. It just doesn't make sense what they are trying to do when it

comes to voting.

Even with all of this, my Democratic colleagues have spent most of

this year trying to sell the American public on a bill that would

centralize power, that would impose burdensome rules on State and local

governments, and that would take away constitutional responsibilities

and rights and all but ensure rampant voter fraud. That is correct. A

piece of legislation that would do--what?--make it easier to cheat.

So, in the interest of the transparency my Democratic colleagues have

promised, let's take a closer look at the legislation they are pushing

forward.

Like most proposals they have tried to force through this year, this

latest, brazen political power grab is built on a foundation of

unreasonable mandates--mandates from the Federal Government to the

State and local governments. Yet, rather than simplifying the process,

these new rules would throw your local elections into chaos.

If passed, the provisions in this bill would mandate the use of

ballot casting technology and voter registration systems that don't

even exist yet. That is correct. What is being mandated is not in

existence, but when it does come to exist, you can bet that it will

cost a fortune, that it will come with a steep learning curve, and that

there will be buddies of the Democratic Party that will make a bucket

of money.

The same automatic registration procedures that failed voters in

California and Illinois will fail voters in every State in this

country.

It would force States to stand aside for activists running ballot

harvesting schemes--and, indeed, ballot harvesting is a scheme. Anyone

who has ever watched one of these campaigns in action knows that

forcing officials to tolerate them is an invitation for these activists

to engage in a little sleight of hand, if you will.

In fact, this bill truly outdoes itself when it comes to encouraging

fraud. Its hallmark provision would ban meaningful voter ID laws and

stop State and local officials from cleaning up their voter rolls. This

bill strips away every commonsense defense against voter fraud.

It would also inject fear into the process by mandating donor

disclosure and weaponizing a partisan FEC against minority political

parties.

The American people know there is only one reason you would work this

hard to remove transparency from elections: They are seeking to remove

transparency from the voter. Truth be told, many of my colleagues

across the aisle know it, too, which is why this bill has earned

bipartisan opposition.

I have spent the better part of 2 years coming to the floor to object

to various iterations of this bill, and I will continue to do so until

my colleagues abandon this partisan power grab.