First appearance on Fox: Mississippi’s secretary of state has sent a letter to President Biden’s Department of Justice asking it to stop enforcing a Biden executive order that it warns is being used to register ineligible convicts and illegal immigrants to vote.
“As you know, on March 7, 2021, President Biden issued Executive Order No. 14019, requiring the Department of Justice agencies to withdraw from their historic law enforcement mission from voter registration and voting operations.” said the Mississippi Secretary of State. Gov. Michael Watson wrote in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland this week.
“These efforts are an intrusion into national politics and a misuse of federal revenue and resources. Furthermore, these efforts will allow your agencies to exclude people, including potentially ineligible felons, from voting. They’re trying to register and get the right to vote.” State and local officials will work to help achieve this goal. ”
The presidential order in question was Biden’s signature In 2021, a bill was introduced in an attempt to combat racial discrimination and “protect the right to vote,” requiring government agencies to “expand opportunities for people to register to vote, be informed about the election process, and participate.” “We will consider it,” he instructed. ”
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L – President Biden R – Voting Booth (Getty Images)
In his letter, Watson said the executive order may “force” the U.S. Marshals Service to “change its agreements with prisons” that require them to provide voter registration materials and facilitate mail-in voting. outlined concerns.
“According to the Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Marshals Service has amended 936 contracts and intergovernmental agreements that require state and local government complicity in potentially registering prisoners who are ineligible to vote,” the letter reads. It is written. “Additionally, we are asking the Department of Justice to facilitate voter registration and mail-in voting for individuals in Bureau of Prisons custody.
“This program creates many opportunities for ineligible prisoners to register to vote in Mississippi.”
Watson told Fox News Digital that he is not convinced the Biden administration is paying close attention to the voting status of the people involved.
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President Joe Biden speaks during a meeting of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council in the Indian Treaty Room of the White House on Wednesday, December 13, 2023 in Washington, DC, USA. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“I’m sorry to say that I don’t necessarily trust the Biden administration, but Mississippi has rules and regulations regarding who can vote when it comes to felons, and our state has criminal disenfranchisement. There are, and I don’t think the Biden administration is particularly concerned about it, because when it comes to making sure these people can vote, they’re going to register, including illegal aliens who are in custody. We have a big problem, and that’s what prompted me to write this letter to Attorney General Garland,” Watson told FOX News Digital.
Watson’s letter explains that the program “provides prisoners with misleading information about their rights to both register and vote in Mississippi, rights they may not have.” There is.
“For example, many of the people in sheriff’s custody are convicted felons who are considered ineligible to vote under Mississippi law. “Voters with only a temporary relationship who do not meet the residency requirements to become Mississippians,” the letter reads.
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President Joe Biden walks with U.S. Border Patrol agents along the U.S.-Mexico border on Sunday, Jan. 8, 2023, in El Paso, Texas. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Watson wrote that Mississippi prisons are being asked to “work with other reliable voter information sources to assist federal prison inmates with voter registration, mail-in voting, and notification of upcoming elections.” Ta.
“We are not aware of any contact with our office. The question then becomes, what organizations are the sheriffs using to accomplish this request?” the letter asks. Masu.
“Many outside organizations that provide voter registration and vote collection services are partisan organizations with a history of unreliability. There are documented instances of these organizations misinstructing voters. “It’s not appropriate for the federal government to force partisan groups into voting.” Please proceed in Mississippi or another state. ”
The letter specifically addresses concerns that undocumented immigrants in Mississippi prisons could be registered to vote through this executive order if the program is not closely monitored.
“Our understanding is that everyone under the protection of the Marshals has been given a form informing them of their right to register and vote,” the letter said. “Providing ineligible noncitizens with information on how to register to vote will undoubtedly encourage illegal voter registration and expose them to legal risks beyond their immigration status.”
Watson’s letter says that at a time when millions of people are illegally committing illegal acts, the Biden administration “risks bloating state voter rolls with ineligible and non-citizen voters.” “The cost of taxpayers’ money and significant law enforcement resources” is “very shocking.” Immigrants crossed the southern border.
An illegal immigrant suspect caught with 230 pounds of marijuana is handcuffed during a traffic stop north of Brownsville, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley. (Photo by Robert Daemmrich Photography Inc/Corbis via Getty Images)
Watson told Fox News Digital it was an “urgent” issue with the presidential election just eight months away.
”If you look at what’s happening at the border when so many illegal aliens are coming into our country, imagine what efforts are being made to get them to register to vote, and is what this is all about,” Watson told FOX News Digital. “This is about control, it’s about their continuation of power, and unfortunately it puts our country in a terrible position, and it’s immediate, and our decision to stop the program… We hope they will respect our request.”
“The information we want to know is which prisons in Mississippi they work in. We asked them to prove their documentation. What exactly do you guys do in our prisons? We want to make sure that we understand which prisoner you are.’ We’ve been talking to them so we can understand whether they’re eligible to vote or not. And with this election coming up in November, I think it’s incumbent on every state to take this notice and push back as best they can. It’s so important to the future of our country, and it’s what we leave behind in this country. ”
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Voters filling out their ballots in the school gymnasium (John Moore/Getty Images)
Jason Sneed, executive director of the Honest Elections Project, told Fox News Digital that he praised Watson’s letter warning of programs that “put election integrity and voter trust at risk” for “political gain.” Told.
“The Biden administration is aggressively pursuing a partisan vote stripping program using taxpayer dollars,” Sneed said. “From the possibility of using law enforcement resources to register ineligible voters and non-citizens to the possibility that the administration is collaborating with left-wing organizations and using tax dollars to pay students to mobilize young voters. Nothing is off the table leading up to the recent announcement.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and Department of Justice for comment, but did not receive a response.
