A sweeping new GOP voting restriction bill in Texas is an 'assault on democracy' and 'un-American,' says President Biden

President Joe Biden characterized a new voting restriction bill in Texas as an "assault on democracy."
GOP-backed voting bills, said Biden, are "disproportionately targeting Black and Brown Americans."
The bill finalized by lawmakers in Texas restricts the times and methods voters can use to cast ballots.
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President Joe Biden criticized a bill being finalized by Texas lawmakers that would impose sweeping restrictions on voting as an "assault on democracy" and "un-American" in a statement Saturday.

The bill would see drive-thru voting banned, empower partisan poll watchers, limit voting on Sundays when many Black church-goers cast ballots, and make it easier to overturn election results in situations where there is no evidence of widespread fraud affecting the result.

"Today, Texas legislators put forth a bill that joins Georgia and Florida in advancing a state law that attacks the sacred right to vote. It's part of an assault on democracy that we've seen far too often this year-and often disproportionately targeting Black and Brown Americans," Biden said in a statement.

"It's wrong and un-American. In the 21st century, we should be making it easier, not harder, for every eligible voter to vote," he added.

The bill in Texas is the latest in a series of moves by Republican state legislatures to restrict access to voting.

In Georgia, a voting restriction bill passed in March led to criticism from corporations including Coca-Cola and Delta. Restrictive measures have also been introduced by GOP-controlled legislatures in Florida and Arizona.

Critics say the bills are designed to impede Black voters and have been likened to Jim Crow laws that enforced racial segregation in the South.

Republicans in Texas say the laws are necessary to increase trust in the integrity of the elections, though no evidence of widespread fraud was found in last year's presidential election in the state, reported the Texas Tribune.

The bill is expected to pass ahead of the end of the state's legislative session on Sunday.

The push for voting restrictions has been given impetus by former president Donald Trump's groundless claims that last year's elections were tainted by widespread fraud.

Sen. Bryan Hughes and state Rep. Briscoe Cain, the main sponsors of the bill, defended the restrictions in a statement Saturday.

"Even as the national media minimizes the importance of election integrity, the Texas Legislature has not bent to headlines or corporate virtue signaling," they said in a joint statement.

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