Fellow Patriots (FOR IMMEDIATE ACTION)
Fellow Patriots (FOR IMMEDIATE ACTION)
IN THIS EMAIL YOU SHOULD HAVE: 1- The text of the press release (below) regarding the circulating Petition; 2- Two Links that provide the Georgia Senate membership roster and the House membership roster, both of which have phone numbers and emails of all members; 3- Quotes from court decisions regarding the plenary power of a legislative body to select electors; 4- Two attachments, which are the actual Petitions for the Georgia Senate and the Georgia House.
Spread the info far and wide so many people will call legislators. In fact, the court language below suggests that the Speaker of the House and the Presiding Officer of the Senate have the power to convene their respective chambers without any call by the Governor since this is a federal election matter.
LINKS
Governor’s Office: 404.656.1776
STATUTES AND COURT CASES
See 3 U.S.C. Sec. 5 ….
The right to vote is fundamental.
The U.S. Supreme Court has held that the right to vote is a “fundamental political right,” “preservative of all rights.” Yick Wo v. Hopkins, 118 U.S. 356, 370, 6 S. Ct. 1064, 30 L. Ed. 220 (1886); see also United States v. Anderson, 481 F.2d 685, 699 (4th Cir. 1973). This right extends not only to “the initial allocation of the franchise,” but also to “the manner of its exercise.” Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S. 98, 104–05, 121 S. Ct. 525, 148 L. Ed. 2d 388 (2000). Infringement of fundamental constitutional freedoms such as the right to vote “for even minimal periods of time, unquestionably constitutes irreparable injury.” Elrod v. Burns, 427 U.S. 347, 373, 96 S. Ct. 2673, 49 L. Ed. 2d 547 (1976); see also Newsom v. Albemarle Cnty. Sch. Bd., 354 F.3d 249, 261 (4th Cir. 2003).
Each House has control of its rules. A majority of either body should be able to convene. A majority of both together can convene. Grab a hotel ballroom if you must, for Covid reasons or otherwise, and act as the Legislature of the State of Georgia under Article I, Section 4. That power is plenary to the State Legislature. John Eastman testified to that fact in the hearings.
This selection from a recent 8th Circuit case (October) interpreting Minnesota’s election laws may be helpful to the analysis:
The analysis is relatively straightforward. By its plain terms, the Electors Clause vests the power to determine the manner of selecting electors exclusively in the “Legislature” of each state. U.S. Const. art. II, § 1, cl. 2; McPherson v. Blacker, 146 U.S. 1, 27 (1892) (“The constitution . . . . leaves it to the legislature exclusively[.]”). And this vested authority is not just the typical legislative power exercised pursuant to a state constitution. Rather, when a state legislature enacts statutes governing presidential elections, it operates “by virtue of a direct grant of authority” under the United States Constitution. Bush v. Palm Beach Cnty. Canvassing Bd., 531 U.S. 70, 76 (2000). Consequently, only the Minnesota Legislature, and not the Secretary, has plenary authority to establish the manner of conducting the presidential election in Minnesota.
Carson v. Simon (8th Cir., Oct. 29, 2020)
PRESS RELEASE REGARDING THE PETITION
Senators Introduce Petition to Call Special Session
(December 5, 2020) | Today, Sen. William Ligon (R – Brunswick), Sen. Greg Dolezal (R – Cumming), Sen. Brandon Beach (R – Alpharetta) and Sen. Burt Jones (R – Jackson) have drafted a Petition calling for and convening a Special Session. The petition serves as notification to Governor Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger that an emergency exists such that a session of the General Assembly is being called for and convened on Tuesday, December 8, 2020, at 10:00 A.M. in order to attend to such emergency and for all purposes provided for pursuant to Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution of the United States.
This Petition comes after the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee was inundated with affidavits, signed under penalty of perjury, from citizens all over the state who testified to blatant election fraud and many violations of the law that have taken place during the 2020 General Election as well as during the follow-up recounts.
“We recognize our duty to move forward with this Petition due to the level of fraud and violations of law which took place during this 2020 election cycle. We urge others to join us,” stated Sen. Ligon. “We need at least 29 signatures in the Senate on the Petition before 9 AM, Tuesday, December 8, 2020. A similar Petition in the House requires at least 91 signatures by that same time. Now is the time to call your senators and representatives to stand up and be counted on this effort to restore integrity in the election.”
As the Petition makes clear, testimonial and other evidence given before the Georgia Senate Judiciary Subcommittee demonstrated a systemic failure to observe Georgia Election laws. Underage individuals and convicted felons registered and were allowed to vote. People voted who were not listed in the state’s records as having been registered to vote. Voters who moved to a different county more than 30 days prior to the election and failed to re-register were allowed to cast votes. Voters registered using bogus addresses such as UPS facilities and other stores, yet their votes counted. Ballots of individuals who were deceased prior to Election Day counted. Over and over again, ballots were counted outside the view of poll watchers or designated monitors, defying the law. Even the law itself was modified by an unconstitutional agreement which weakened signature verification requirements for absentee ballot applications and absentee ballots as set out in Code Sections 21-2-381 and 21-2-386.
According to committee members, that was just a part of the testimony that came before them and much more is still being submitted. Any certification of electors by the Governor of Georgia or the Georgia Secretary of State in light of such systemic failures, the Petition states, would not be in conformity with the Georgia Election Code enacted by the General Assembly pursuant to its plenary power. Therefore, following Supreme Court guidance in Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S. 98 at 104, a state legislature, “after granting the franchise in the special context of Article II, can take back the power to appoint electors.”
“We believe we have reached the point that the results of this election are untrustworthy,” stated Sen. Burt Jones. “Such pervasive disregard for election laws by our election officials requires a decisive response. It is time for our legislative body to do its job.”
Sen. Brandon Beach is Chairman of the Transportation Committee. He represents the 21st Senate District which includes portions of Cherokee and Fulton counties. He can be reached at 404.463.1378 or by email at brandon.beach@senate.ga.gov.
Sen. Greg Dolezal represents the 27th Senate District, which includes parts of Forsyth County. He may be reached by phone at 404.656.7127 or via email at greg.dolezal@senate.ga.gov.
Sen. William Ligon Jr. serves as Chairman of the Banking and Financial Institutions Committee. He represents the 3rd Senate District which includes Brantley, Camden, Glynn, and McIntosh counties and portions of Charlton County. He can be reached by phone at 404.463.1383 or by email at william@senatorligon.com.
Sen. Burt Jones is the Chairman of the Insurance and Labor Committee. He represents the 25th Senate District which includes Baldwin, Butts, Greene, Jasper, Morgan and Putnam counties and portions of Bibb, Jones and Walton counties. He may be reached at 404.656.0082 or via email at burt.jones@senate.ga.gov.
