Senate Committee to Take Up Election Interference, Anti-Lynching Bills

The Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on Thursday to advance bills to deter interference in U.S. elections by foreign nationals and make lynching a federal crime, along with nine appeals court judges.

Here’s a look at the two bills:

S. 2785 - Defending Elections against Trolls from Enemy Regimes (DETER) Act: Sponsored by Sens. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC), this bill would make foreign nationals who have engaged in, or intend to engage in, improper interference in a U.S. election inadmissible. It’d define “improper interference” as conduct that:

• Violates federal criminal, voting rights, or campaign finance law, or is under the direction of a foreign government; or
• Interferes with any general or primary federal, state, or local election or caucus, including a candidate’s campaign or a ballot measure.

S. 3178 - Justice for Victims of Lynching Act of 2018: Sponsored by Sens. Kamala Harris (D-CA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Tim Scott (R-SC) ― this bill would make lynching a federal crime that automatically warrants an enhanced sentence under existing federal hate crime statutes punishable by up to life imprisonment. It wouldn’t preclude a murder charge from being filed on top of the lynching charge.

The committee will also consider the nominations of eight district court judges and one circuit court judge in the hearing, which begins at 10am ET.

Tell your senators how they should vote on these bills and nominations if they reach the floor (or in the hearing if they’re on the committee)! Share your thoughts below!

— Eric Revell

(Photo Credit: iStock.com / Tanarch)