S8 E24: Voting Rights, Duck Stamps & Haiti: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

News of the Week

• The week saw major events including the UN General Assembly, elections in Germany and Canada, and chaos on the TV show "The View" after two hosts tested positive for COVID-19 (44s).
• Filming a television show can be unpredictable and occasionally frustrating, much like raising a toddler (1m14s).
• The events in Del Rio, Texas, dominated the week, where thousands of migrants, mostly Haitians, attempted to cross the border and were met with a response that included Border Patrol agents on horseback appearing to use their horses' reins like whips (1m30s).
• The Biden Administration responded to the images by saying they were "horrific and horrible," but this response was met with skepticism given the country's history of similar incidents (2m11s).
• The administration's record on immigration, particularly on the southern border, has been underwhelming, and their decision to release some Haitians into the US while sending thousands back to Haiti was seen as haphazard (3m0s).
• The administration used Title 42, a policy introduced by Trump, to expel over 2,000 Haitians, which a federal judge in Washington said was likely illegal (3m52s).
• The Special Envoy for Haiti, Daniel Foote, resigned this week, refusing to be associated with the administration's policy (4m4s).
• The Biden Administration has been criticized for its handling of immigration, particularly in regards to the treatment of Haitian migrants, with some being chained and expelled from the country (4m18s).
• A Haitian migrant described being chained like an animal, with their hands, feet, and waist restrained, and being kept on a plane until they were unchained to avoid being seen by journalists (4m22s).
• The Administration's focus on seeming better on immigration rather than actually being better has been questioned, with some policy changes being made in response to public outcry, such as the decision to no longer use horses in Del Rio (5m10s).
• The use of horses in Del Rio was widely criticized, but some argue that focusing solely on this issue misses the larger problems with the Administration's immigration strategy (5m30s).
• The Biden Administration promised a big shift in how it treats migrants at the border, but 8 months in, it is unclear what the immigration strategy is, with some officials admitting that they badly need one (6m2s).
• The Administration has been accused of sending vulnerable people back into harm's way, and it is past time for them to stop simply telling people who they are and start showing them (6m11s).

Voting Rights

• The topic of voting is also discussed, with a focus on a 1988 election PSA that was strikingly different from others, featuring a surprise at the beginning and end (7m48s).
• The PSA referenced the Constitution of the United States and its suggestion for keeping "fools" out of government, and was sponsored by Members Only, a bold move given the company's name and its proximity to Hitler's (8m20s).
• A new report from the Brennan Center shows that between January and July, 18 states passed 30 laws that restrict voter access, including crackdowns on mail-in and early voting, harsher voter ID requirements, and voter roll purges (8m44s).
• The states that passed these laws include New Hampshire, which is 88% white and has a Republican governor, and is described as "basically just Florida with foliage" (9m15s).
• Some of the biggest efforts to undermine voting rights have been concentrated in the closest states in last year's election, including three states where Biden's combined margin of victory was less than 43,000 votes (9m30s).
• If these states had gone the other way, Trump would still be president, and the consequences would be severe (9m37s).
• Those pushing these bills claim that critics are distorting what is inside them, and that any objections could be cleared up by reading the bill (9m56s).
• However, reading the bills reveals that they do make it harder to vote, particularly for certain people, such as people of color (11m3s).
• For example, in Texas, the bill rolls back innovative measures put in place during the pandemic that made voting more accessible, including 24-hour and drive-through voting (11m27s).
• The harm caused by these changes is targeted, with 56% of voters who used 24-hour voting and 53% of voters who used drive-through voting being people of color (11m54s).
• The changes to voting laws are not explicitly stated to target people of color, but the impact is clear (12m18s).
• Several US states, including Texas, have implemented new barriers to voting by mail, coinciding with a surge in black voters using this method, (12m28s).
• These states have also introduced harsher voter ID requirements, despite federal court cases finding that black and Latino voters disproportionately lack access to the required types of photo IDs, (12m39s).
• Some proponents of these bills, such as a state representative from Georgia, argue that making voting harder is not necessarily a bad thing, as they believe voting is both a right and a privilege, (13m13s).
• However, this perspective is contradictory, as a right and a privilege are two different things, (13m35s).
• Republicans have been pushing restrictive voting laws for years, with North Carolina crafting a law in 2013 that targeted African-American voters with "almost surgical precision", (14m20s).
• Well-funded groups like The Heritage Foundation, co-founded by Paul Weyrich, have helped push these laws, with Weyrich admitting he didn't want everybody to vote, (14m55s).
• The Heritage Foundation's former president, Jim DeMint, also stated that voter ID laws have led to elections changing towards more conservative candidates, (15m1s).
• The organization is still active in pushing new bills, with their executive director bragging about their role in drafting legislation for state legislators, (15m18s).
• The success of these efforts is partly due to a pair of Supreme Court decisions that gutted the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which prohibited racial discrimination in voting, (16m3s).
• The first decision, Shelby County versus Holder, released states from certain obligations under the Voting Rights Act, (16m12s).
• Two US Supreme Court decisions made it easier for states to pass discriminatory voting laws while making it harder to challenge them: one requiring areas with a prior history of discriminatory voting laws to run new ones past the federal government first, and the other finding that a voting restriction's discriminatory impact doesn't necessarily violate the Voting Rights Act (16m17s).
• In Texas, lawmakers were told not to use the word "racism" during debates over a new voting bill, with the chair asking members to be civil and respectful of their colleagues (17m10s).
• A constant theme in debates over these bills is black elected officials pointing out their impact, and their white colleagues telling them to be quiet, as seen in Arizona where a lawmaker was shut down for pointing out the disproportionate impacts of a bill on certain groups (17m41s).
• In Arizona, a lawmaker was not allowed to finish stating the 12 words "the effect of this bill will make it harder for independent voters, seniors, Native Americans, black, brown, and low-income people to vote" due to a point of order (18m12s).
• A colleague read from the rule book to explain the point of order, stating that no member shall be permitted to indulge in personalities, use language personally offensive, or arraign motives of members, and felt that motives were arraigned with regards to "colored people" and their ability to vote (18m45s).
• Republicans claim that they are not being racist in pushing these bills, but need a reason for them, having shifted their justification from voter fraud to something less tangible, such as what people are feeling (19m45s).
• The lieutenant governor of Texas stated that a bill is needed because of how people feel, without providing a specific reason (20m12s).
• Many Americans, particularly Republicans, do not trust the voting system in the United States, despite state and local officials finding the last election to be the most secure in American history (20m51s).
• Dan Patrick, among others, has contributed to this distrust by calling voting by mail a scam and claiming that Democrats will take advantage of opportunities to steal votes, although he provides no evidence to support these claims (21m0s).
• Patrick's claims are seen as baseless and misleading, with some comparing them to obvious lies, and his refusal to provide evidence or pay out rewards for proof of voter fraud undermines his credibility (21m19s).
• Local election supervisors, including Republicans, have spoken out against new voting restriction bills, calling them "stupid" and a "solution looking for a problem" (23m12s).
• These bills are seen as attempts to manufacture problems and stir up baseless fear in order to pass unnecessary restrictions targeting particular groups (23m25s).
• A recent audit in Arizona, which was widely criticized as a "nonsense audit," failed to show evidence of voter fraud or cheating, but its organizers still recommended tightening up the election process to provide additional certainty (23m36s).
• The true motives behind these actions are seen as a shameless attempt to restrict voting rights and undermine trust in the democratic process (23m53s).
• Proposed legislation, such as the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act, aims to address voting rights issues by restoring parts of the Voting Rights Act gutted by the Supreme Court, making voting by mail available to every voter, and implementing automatic voter registration and national standards (24m2s).
• However, Mitch McConnell has announced that he will filibuster any attempt to pass these acts, making it necessary to end the filibuster to protect the ballot (24m25s).
• Some Democratic politicians, such as Joe Manchin, have defended the filibuster, while President Joe Biden has not explicitly supported doing away with it to protect voting rights (24m46s).
• Biden has suggested that the American public can out-organize voter suppression, but this approach has been criticized as unrealistic and ineffective (25m3s).
• Voting rights groups and activists have expressed frustration with Biden's response, urging him to support the elimination of the filibuster and endorse the For the People Act (25m45s).
• The solution to voter suppression cannot be to simply vote harder, as this approach ignores the systemic barriers and obstacles that prevent people from voting (26m12s).
• The situation requires federal assistance and significant action, rather than relying on the perseverance of the American Spirit (26m5s).
• Republicans are aware that increased voter turnout may happen, which is why they are implementing voter suppression measures, and Democrats must take concrete steps to address this issue (26m51s).

Duck Stamp Conservation and Art Contest

• The outdoors is home to various natural wonders, including lakes, trees, and wildlife, and one way to conserve these natural resources is through the purchase of duck stamps, which are not postage stamps but rather permits for hunters that cost $25 and have been a huge success story for conservation, with 98% of every dollar made going to protecting wetlands (28m50s).
• The majority of duck stamps are sold to waterfowl hunters who are required by law to have a federal duck stamp in their possession while hunting, but others also buy them voluntarily to help conserve wildlife (29m13s).
• The federal government issues a new duck stamp every year, and since 1934, the stamps have raised over a billion dollars to protect over 6 million acres of wetlands habitat (29m50s).
• Non-hunters also collect duck stamps, and some of the past designs have been particularly beautiful, such as the 1960 stamp featuring a family of redhead ducks and the 1981 stamp showcasing a majestic snow goose (30m17s).
• Each year's duck stamp design is chosen through an annual nationwide art competition, where judges independently vote on each entry, considering not only the visual impact of the art but also its anatomical accuracy (30m46s).
• The competition has been the subject of some drama, including a rivalry between traditional duck artist Tim Taylor and his more avant-garde rival Rob McBroom, who has been known to violate the rules and mock the contest (31m42s).
• Rob McBroom has submitted paintings that go against the desired aesthetic and has even parodied Tim Taylor's previous paintings, leading to a long-standing feud between the two artists (32m18s).
• Rob McBroom created a piece of artwork using personal photographs, which included imagery of Barack Obama's birth certificate and communist symbols, to mock Tim, showcasing the intensity of the duck stamp competition (32m44s).
• The duck stamp competition had incredible entries last year, including a duck tripping in midair and a dog on its way to a leather bar, with the overall winner being a painting of a lesser scaup drake by artist Richard Clifton (33m47s).
• The Trump Administration introduced a rule requiring all entries to feature hunting imagery, which many people disliked, but this rule will be gone next year (34m21s).
• Stamp sales are down, resulting in less money for conservation, and more people need to be driven to collect these stamps, requiring this year's entry to be exceptional (34m40s).
• A commissioned oil painting of a blue-winged teal flying in the Nintendo Game Duck Hunt was disqualified due to the rule against having numbers or lettering on the entry (35m0s).
• A second entry, a painting of ducks judging the duck stamp art contest, was also disqualified due to the same rule (35m46s).
• Three other paintings were entered, all of which qualified for the contest, including one of a redhead duck hunting a hunter hunting another duck (36m9s).
• The judges did not vote for the painting of the redhead duck, with none of the five judges voting for it (36m30s).
• A duck painting contest, the Federal Duck Stamp Contest, was held, and three entries were submitted, including one with a duck wearing a pearl earring and another depicting a fight between two duck artists, Tim Taylor and Rob McBroom (36m45s).
• The judges did not select any of the submitted entries to move past the first round of voting, with the winner of the 2022-23 contest being Jim Hautman from Minnesota with a painting of a red-headed wood duck (38m45s).
• The winning entry was a beautiful duck painting, but the submitted entries were also of high quality, with one being described as exquisite and another as a masterpiece (36m54s).
• The submitted entries did not receive any votes from the judges, which may say more about the judges than the quality of the paintings (39m23s).
• The paintings will be auctioned off, with 100% of the proceeds going to the Federal Duck Stamp Program, and viewers can bid on the pieces at bestduckingstamps.com until Friday at 10:30 p.m. (40m4s).
• The auction provides an opportunity for viewers to support a good cause and own an original piece of art, with the bidding starting immediately (40m15s).