Eric Holder slams GOP voting laws as 'echoes of Jim Crow'
Former Attorney General Eric Holder spoke at the beginning of Tuesday's Democratic National Convention spotlight on social justice and Hillary Clinton. He began by saying he was "proud to be with her, because I've seen that she has the skills to be commander-in-chief, and the strength to lead our already great nation in this hour of challenge and consequence — now did you hear what I just said? Already great nation. Donald, did you hear me? Already great nation."
He said that our criminal justice system is "out of balance," with one in three black men destined for jail, and as America struggles with having to consider "whether black lives really matter — and they do" — "we need a president who will end this policy of over-incarceration." Unlike what you might hear from Republicans, violent crime has gone down since President Obama took office and it will continue to drop under President Hillary Clinton, Holder said, and then he turned to Republican-backed voter ID laws and moves to reduce voting stations in minority areas. "We need a president sensitive to these echoes of Jim Crow," and GOP moves to enact a "modern day poll tax," he said. "Hillary Clinton will be that president," promoting early voting and universal automatic registration. You can watch Holder's even-keeled broadside below. Peter Weber
The Week
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