Answer:
Both the original Constitution and the Fourteenth Amendment specifically delegate to the states the right to determine the qualifications of
voters and to disqualify anyone who participates “in rebellion, or other
crime.” Congress cannot override the Constitution through legislation
and has no authority to restore the voting rights of felons for federal
elections. The American people and their freely elected state representatives must make their own decisions in their own states about when
felons should have their civil rights restored, including the right to vote.
Requiring a waiting period and an application process is fair and reasonable given the high recidivism rate among felons. Any legislation
passed by Congress taking away that power is both unconstitutional
and unwise public policy.
Whether—or when—felons should have their voting rights
restored is a public policy issue that is open to debate, but
there is no question that the authority to decide this issue lies with
the states, not with Congress.
A federal bill such as S. 2550, sponsored by Senator Rand Paul (R–
KY)—which would restore the right to vote to nonviolent felons after
they have served their term of imprisonment and no more than oneyear of probation1
—is a blatant example of congressional overreach that
invades power specifically reserved to the states by the Constitution.
Explanation:
