time to continue debate on confirming lee cessna to head the u.s. citizenship and immigration services. he's currently in charge of the immigration policy office at homeland security. senators are attending their weekly party lunch meetings, and we'll continue our live senate coverage when they return at 2:15. thursday we're life in frank -- we're live in frank further, kentucky, for the next stop on the 50 capitals tour. kentucky's senate president robert stivers and secretary of state will be our guests on the bus during "washington journal" starting at 8:10 a.m. eastern. and join us thursday for the entire "washington journal" starting at 7 a.m. eastern on c-span. >> earlier today several groups held rallies outside the supreme court as oral argument was heard or in a case dealing with partisan gerrymandering. the case, gill v. whitford, considered whether redistricting in wisconsin was

unconstitutional. current and former lawmakers including former california governor arnold schwarzenegger spoke before the supreme court and also the plaintiff in the case spoke at the rally. >> when do we want it? >> no. >> good morning and thank you for coming out to our rally. my name is joanne antoine, and i am the manager of outreach for common cause maryland. we are a nonpartisan grassroots organization dedicated to upholding the core values of our american democracy. we have over 30 state chapters and over a million members throughout the country. common cause is just one of three groups that is hosting today's event, so please join me in giving a round of applause to represent us and center for american progress. [applause] i also want to give a special thank you to all the groups who took different actions like filing amicus briefs and supporting the movement in a number of different ways. and also a special thank you to

all of the volunteers who came out early and are helping out today. now today's rally is personal. again, i work with common cause maryland, and maryland is one of the two most gerrymandered states in the country. it's the worst nation -- it's the worst in the nation for how we draw our congressional and district lines, and unfortunately, we can't rely on our elected officials to fix the system. so today it's time for the supreme court to create ground rules that safeguard our fundamental right to vote and make sure that vote is counted. today we're going to be joined by a number of speakers who are going to highlight the importance of today's event, the work that their organizations have been doing in support of the movement and in support of this fair maps rally. so before we begin, i just want to make sure that if anyone here is tweeting or posting you use our hashtag fair maps and, of course, join us as we can't.

please join me in welcoming our first speaker, our president for common cause national chapter, karen -- [inaudible] [cheers and applause] >> it's a challenge getting up here. nice to be with a all of you. and i am proud to the stand here with many of our allies who are joined together the fight back against partisangerrymanderers. we are pleased to join the campaign legal center and the brennan center to lead an amicus brief in the case argued behind us in the supreme court this morning. it brought together state attorneys general, city attorneys, current and former members of congress, elected officials in state legislatures across the country from both parties as well as citizen organizations to talk about the manipulation of our elections

for partisan advantage and the negative impact that has op our democracy. on our democracy. every eligible american wants to have a voice and know that their vote counts in determining who is elected. and in the policies that are passed by congress and state legislatures that determine the future of our families and our communities. politicians who manipulate the voting maps are placing their party's power above the people's. they sow the seeds of cynicism and cause too many americans to tune out of our politics. that's because it escalates polarization, that rewards political dysfunction and emboldens the extremes on both sides of the aisle. and it provides little to no incentive for the public to engage. we are here today to show the supreme court that the public does care about these issues. it may seem like wonky election issues, but it has a real impact

on people's lives. voters recognize that highly gerrymandered legislatures are moving more extreme agendas driven by polarization and the safe seat that is gerrymandering creates. we have worked with colleagues like the league of conservation voters, the national education association and the league of women voters in wisconsin to show that partisan gerrymandering in wisconsin results in the adoption of policies that are more partisan and extreme than residents in wisconsin. for example, in wisconsin there is a historic pride in clean government, and several years ago wisconsinites put in place an independent government accountability board. this board was set to oversee and enforce compliance with ethics, campaign finance and election laws. but the gerrymandered legislature dismantled the

independent government accountability board. why did they do that? they did it because they wanted a weaker partisan agency in control, because they didn't want anybody to be investigating their actions. there was an investigation that the government accountability board put in place that was scott walker and special interest money that were flowing in to recall elections. and they don't want accountability, and they don't want with enforcement of clean government rules. we also saw funding for k-12 and public universities being very important to wisconsin's citizens, huge proportion of democrats, republicans and independents support that. and what did the highly partisan legislature do? they slashed funding for those programs. we also see strong bipartisan support for conservation and environmental reforms. and what did the highly partisan, gerrymandered legislature do? they cut and slashed those programs. in north carolina, another state

where we see huge partisan gerrymander in place, we saw the republican legislature ban transgender bathrooms. more than 80% of the population supported having transgender bathrooms. but they didn't move. and then when we saw the nccaa, the nba's all-star game, concert venues and other businesses say we are not going to north carolina, businesses suffered, and the state lost millions of dollars. did the republican legislature act? no. why? they're in safe districts. they don't care what the people think. we also saw north carolina put in place a power grab in terms of a terrible vote -- voting measure that put discriminatory laws on the books including slashing early voting, discriminatory voter id in order to insure their partisan advantage.

so the need for districts is not just a problem in red states. we heard from joanne, this is also a problem in blue states like maryland. and so that's why we have a bipartisan set of legislators, arnold schwarzenegger, u.s. senator john mccain, ohio governor john kasich joining democrats like sheldon whitehouse in rhode island and tammy baldwin of wisconsin to support and end the partisan gerrymandering. the american people understand how politicians in both parties are stacking the deck against people. and as a result, we are seeing an unprecedented groundswell of support for the end to partisan gerrymandering. we are seeing reforms moving in states, and we are also seeing people gathering at events like this. in north carolina today, leaders from common cause's north carolina hbcu student alliance, the historically black college

and universities, are marching through the largest hbcu in north carolina. north carolina a and t, the home of the aggies. and they're marching on a street that literally divides the campus in two. on the left is the 13th congressional district, and on the right is the 6th congressional district. why was that gerrymander put in place? because it is 10,000 black students, and that's a powerful voting bloc. and so they divided them right down the center. and so we have these -- the impact of this cannot just be about policies, but also directly affect and assault on the rights of african-american students in north carolina. the supreme court could end gerrymandering as we know it in this whitford case. although the whitford case is before the supreme court and dealing specifically with state legislative districts in wisconsin, if the court affirms the lower court ruling in wisconsin, it will be

establishing the principle that partisan politicians and special interests can no longer are rig the system by manipulating voting maps. [applause] [laughter] the action from the supreme court could reduce costly litigation and also set a clear standard that headaches it clear to state -- that makes it clear to state legislatures as they're drawing maps here is the line you cannot cross. in america no liberty is more fundamental than the right to freely choose our representatives through voting. when politicians manipulate the rules and choose their voters instead, it leads to dysfunction, and legislative bodies that do not care about their constituents. it is time to end this practice. thank you very much. [applause]

>> so we're going to go into a few other p chants. this one is hey, hey, ho, ho, gerrymandering has to go. >> hey, hey,ho, ho, gerrymandering has to go. >> hey, hey, ho, ho, gerrymandering has to go. >> we're tired of your -- [inaudible] stop your gerrymandering. >> we're tired of your tampering, stop your gerrymandering. we're tired of your tampering, stop your gerrymandering. [cheers and applause] >> please join me in welcoming our next speaker, he is the representative from new york's 3rd congressional district. [cheers and applause] >> hey, hey, ho, ho, gerrymandering's got to go! >> hey, hey, h, ho,

gerrymandering's got to go! >> hey, hey, ho, ho, gerrymandering's got to go. >> i'm tom suozzi from new york's 3rd congressional district. the partisan divide in our countried today is mainly caused by partisan gerrymandering. everybody's sick of politics, politicians, they're sick of the finger-pointing and sick of people not getting things done. why is it happening? in the house of representatives, in which i'm a member, there are about 435 seats of which 400 -- thank you. there's 435 seats in the house of representatives in which 400 are safe seats which guaranteed if you're a republican, you're going to win re-election. in a republican seat. if you're in a democratic seat, guaranteed you're going to win re-election in the democratic seat. so you can't lose the general election. if you can't lose the general election, the only way you can lose is if you lose a primary. and very few people vote in a primary.

so who votes in a primary? less than 10% of the people vote in a primary. they're often to the more extremes of the party, the far left for the democrats, the far right for the republicans. if you're a congressperson who can't lose a general election and you just want to keep one wig of your party happy, you're going to try and please that wing of your party. the democrats are trying to please the left, the republicans try and plead please the right. if you try and do anything in the middle, you're going to get squashed like a bug. you're going to lose your primary. that's the problem right now. all these safe seats result in politicians not pandering to the people, not pandering to the general public, they pander to the base of their party. we must get rid of partisan gerrymandering in america. [cheers and applause] to force elected officials to be subject to the only thing that makes democracy works competition. people battling over ideas. i have a better idea than you do. i have a better way of doing it

more effectively. i have a better way of doing it cheaper, helping more people. i've got a better way of doing it. that competition only happens in competitive seats. in our country today, we do not have competitive seats. the reason we don't have competitive seats is because of partisan gerrymandering. this lawsuit today, this case being argued before the supreme court today, if the supreme court decides -- as we hope that they do -- that partisan gerrymandering is illegal, it will change the partisanship of this country. and it will force americans to work together with each other to try and get things done on behalf of the people they serve. i want to thank all the different groups that are up here today for putting so much time. it's a long journal think to get from -- journey to get from where this all started in wisconsin to this lawsuit today with all these people organized like this. don't underestimate how powerful you are by bringing this to the public's attention.

please continue to try and educate people why partisan gerrymandering is destroying our country and making it overly partisan. together we can make a difference here. but now we need the supreme court to help us. hey, hey, ho, ho, gerrymandering has got to go. hey, hey, ho, ho, gerrymandering's got to go. >> thank you, everybody. [cheers and applause] >> hey, hey, ho -- >> gerrymandering's got to go. hey, hey, ho, ho, jerry -- gerrymandering's got to go. >> when politicians choose, the voters always lose. >> when politicians choose, the voters always lose. when politicians choose, the voters always lose. >> please join me in welcoming former congressman jolly representing issue one.

[applause] >> hey, how'd that last one go? since everybody's chanting? >> [inaudible] >> when politicians choose -- >> the voters always lose. >> hey, folks, is this a great day or what? [cheers and applause] listen, i'm proud to stand here with a lot of organizations that are committed to ending political gerrymandering, but i have a confession for everybody this morning right now. i'm a republican. [laughter] listen -- [laughter] thank you. folks, i had the opportunity to serve in the house of representatives representing one of the most competitive congressional districts in the country. it was truly 50/50. i was elected twice as a republican in a district that barack obama had also won twice, and i stand here today and i will tell you if you want to fix gridlock, if you want to end any conversation of term limits, all we need are competitive districts. electorally competitive districts would force congress to find a way to work together.

my time up there i saw three major challenges. the first being political gerrymandering, the second being closed primaries, the third being campaign finance reform. the court today has an opportunity to address the very first one which is political gerrymandering. at the end of the day, the court has already said they have jurisdiction. they did that in the arizona case. now it's time for the court to recognize that there are limits they can put on political gerrymandering. it is what madison asked for in federalist ten when he said the point and purpose of the house is to end excessive factions. we are governed today in a congress that is defined by excessive factions. we know it. and the people who lose are all of us. the people who lose are those who are asking for common sense policies to address the concerns of the american people. and i want to say this as well, you know, we often approach this issue as though it's punishment for elected officials or punishment for candidates or punishment for political parties. folks, this is not punishment.

this is opportunity. both parties will be made stronger if this court ends political gerrymandering. candidates will be stronger -- [applause] candidates will be strong arer be this court ends political gerrymandering, because candidates will have to speak not only to their partisan interests, not only to their base, but also to that third of no-party affiliates and independents who are largely disenfranchised by the major parties. also to voters on other parties who wish to perhaps come over, support a candidate, both parties, all candidates would be made stronger. i saw a living example of this, and it's never more prescient than it is today. we are coming off a terrible disaster in nevada, we know it, it's a national tragedy. we also know that congress isn't going to do a single thing about it. >> no, they won't. no, they won't. >> boo! >> and they're not. they're not. because of how congressional districts are currently controlled. i represented a district in

florida not far from the pulse nightclub, and i came up here last year while the democrats were having their sit-ins, and as a republican, i brokered a no-fly, no-buy bill. i believe we had the votes for it. it was such common sense legislation, a cnn anchor in the morning said that makes too much sense. why won't it pass? i'll tell you exactly why it won't pass. a bunch of younger, more centrist members reached a compromise on no-fly, no-buy with. my side of the aisle said not a chance because of our base and because of the special interest money. but to be fair, the other side of the aisle said, not a chance. we're not working with jolly because jolly just got redrawn into a d plus 6 district, and it is ours in november. that is the breakdown of partisan gerrymandering in the house. when a nation cries out for solutions, this body does nothing. this court can change that. this court can fix that.

folks, the bottom line is there is absolutely zero conviction for bipartisanship in most of the districts that are supermajority districts. there is no reward for it. at the end of the day, you represent your party, you represent the primary voters which constitute a minority is a minority. and so we, the people, are not govern by general election voters. we are govern by primary voters. this court has an opportunity in this case to say, yes, we are going to accept jurisdiction to protect democracy. and, yes, we are going to say there is a standard to limit political gerrymandering. let's get it done, folks. is this a great day or what? come on. [cheers and applause] >> what do we want? representation. >> what do we want? >> representation. >> when do we want it? >> now. >> what do we want? >> representation. >> when do we want it?

>> now! >> please join me in welcoming rachel brewer of represent us. [applause] >> my name is rachel brewer, and i have the honor to work with represent us and the thousands of volunteers who make my job worthwhile. every day we fight to fix our corrupt political system, a system that has sadly become the norm of american politics. a corrupt political system is a broken political system. when institutions designed to protect the public interest cold and fail, when eyes turn elsewhere and loopholes allow those in power to take advantage at our expense, that's corruption. and partisan gerrymandering is corruption in its simplest form. it's gaming the system to block competition so the party in power can keep it for years to come. this abuse of power by our government rigs the system against voters of all parties, and it makes fair representation

little more than a very abstract concept. i know that i am not the only one who is fed up with the system designed to protect people in positions of power no matter the cost. with all of you who are here today, i am ready and willing to rise up and to fight back. [cheers and applause] and together, we can demand an end to partisan gerrymandering, and we can create the government that we deserve, one that represents the people and all of our voices. so the court defines partisan gerrymandering as the drawing of legislative district lines supporting adherence to one political party, but let me break all of that down for you. in the worst circumstances, gerrymandering is an abuse of power that reveals a fundamental distrust of voters. not only does it take away power from the people, but it weakens the power of our actual votes,

and it weakens our faith in our government. it serves the self-interest of the political parties and the political system all at the expense of the public good. we deserve more. so today for the first time in nearly 15 years the supreme court has the chance to end corrupt partisan gerrymandering. we are all here about to witness history, ask we need to shout -- and need to shout loud enough for the courts to hear us, for our politicians to hear us, for history to hear us. we have a chance to see this unjust practice come to an end. we might see this country take a giant step forward towards fixing our corrupt political system and building a future that puts people first. and for everyone who is here today, know that you're not alone in this fight. earlier this month we heard from over 25,000 represent us members from red and blue states a alike who all support us today and who all support this fight to end

partisan gerrymandering. with each of them and with each and every one of you today, i came here for the chance to create real and lasting change. and just is like you, i will not stop fighting until we can create a government where every vote and every voice will matter. and so is we're going to try chanting one more time. it's going to be new, and it's going to be a little different. when i say rise up, i want all of you to shout, fight back. but i want you to shout it for everyone who could not be here today. i want you to shout for the visionaries who came before us, for the reformers who are fighting alongside of us and for the government that we will create together. i want you to shout like your future and your country depends on it. because they do. so, rise up! >> fight back! >> rise up! >> fight back! >> rise up! >> fight back. >> thank you. [cheers and applause]

>> fifteen years ago i had an op-ed with my friend and colleague, republican jim leach from iowa, about the outrage that happened after the 2002 redistricting process in the elections. we pointed out that there were more competitive races in iowa with five members of congress than in new york, illinois, california and florida combined.

because of the surgical precision that we saw by political insiders in both parties. in many cases, they were involved with incumbent protection, not just partisan gain. but frankly, i had no idea that it would get as bad as it has gotten. it's been carried on to a whole new level of intensity and precision due to survey research, computers and some really vicious political in-fighting. and as you've heard, this threatens everybody. it corrodes the political process and disenfranchises millions and millions and millions of americans whose votes don't count for congress. i hope that your being here today part of an effort to put the focus on this insidious practice, that we can raise the profile. but if we get a good decision out of the supreme court, that's only half the job. because what we need is to take

the politicians out of the role of selecting their voters and put voters back in the role of selecting politicians. [cheers and applause] there was a reason that iowa had more competitive congressional races than california and new york and illinois and florida combined. it's because iowa had an independent redistricting commission. we need to have redistricting commissions across the country. every place where there's an initiative process we need to be involved with initiatives to be able to put voters back in charge like they tried to do in florida, like they've done in arizona. but ultimately, i think we ought to have a national, nonpartisan redistricting commission that

puts everybody on equal footing and takes the politics out. unless and until we do that, congress is going to continue to fall short, and americans are going to continue to be shortchanged. thank you very much. [cheers and applause] >> equal districts under law! >> equal districts under law! >> equal districts -- >> under law! >> equal districts under law. >> please join me in recognizing our next speaker from vote vets, executive director will fisher. [applause] >> good morning, everybody. >> good morning. >> as mentioned in the introduction, my name is will fisher. i'm an iraq war veteran, and i believe in free and fair elections and free maps for -- and fair maps for everybody. [cheers and applause]

now, you know, there was -- martin luther king famously asked a question when he said what's the point of being able to sit at the lunch counter if you can't afford hamburger? the same sentiment holds true, because what is the point of having the right to vote if while at the same time that right is being held as existing at the very same time we're seeing individuals become disenfranchised, we're seeing voices silenced through the purging of voter rolls? through the strengthen ping of voter id laws. and, yes, through partisan gerrymandering and these crazy drawn maps. you know, when i swore, when i was a young man, 18 years old, i joined the marinings. it was impeccable timing, may of 2001. i swore, raised my right hand and swore to uphold and protect and defend the constitution of the united states of america. and i took that oath very seriously.

as a recruit at paris island, i took that oath very seriously. when i was a young man in iraq, and i take that oath very seriously today as a veteran. and it's for that reason that i stand here today, because of that oath i took, because of my faith and belief in the ideals of america that i stand shoulder to shoulder and in solidarity with all of those behind me and with hundreds of thousands of veterans around the country and with the organization of which i'm a part, vote vets, to stand here in unison to say that we are committed to defending those ideals that we fought for and that we continue to fight for. now, i wouldn't dare go out on a limb and try to predict the outcome of today's election. but i promise that no matter what that outcome is, everything i've just now said is going to remain just as true tomorrow as it is right now, and i thank you all so very, very much. [applause]

>> hey, hey, ho, ho, gerrymandering's got to go. >> hey, hey, hoho, partisan gerrymander has to go. >> please join me in welcoming the president and executive director of asian-americans advancing justice, john c. yang. [applause] >> good morning, everyone. my name -- >> good morning. >> thank you. my name is john c. yang, i am the president and executive director of asian-americans advancing justice, our mission is to advance the rights of asian-americans and promote and build a just society for all. we are part of a national affiliation with five other partners in atlanta, chicago, san francisco and los angeles. we joined the amicus brief this morning as part of the effort to establish reasonable standards for redistricting and to oppose extreme partisan gerrymandering. the reason we did this is quite simple. it is because communities of color have much to lose with the gerrymandering that is happening

right now. asian-americans represent the fastest growing population in the united states right now. over the past seven years, one-quarter of our population growth in the u.s. is based on asian-americans. now, unfortunately, our representation in federal legislatures and state legislaturings does not reflect -- legislatures does not reflect our current demographics. and unfortunately, this is true of many, many and all communities of color. the truth is this: what happens is our communities get split apart into different districts so that our votes get diluted. our votes do not end up counting the same, so our voices are not heard. instead of being talked to, instead of having a discussion with us, we are being talked at. that is not democracy. that is not what our nation is founded on. and that is why we stand in sol carety -- solidarity with everyone in wanting to establish reasonable redistricting standards. the truth is this: we need to have conversations across all lines.

by having safe districts, that is not happening. instead of having a general election where ideas are discussed, where ideas are debated, we are only talking to our ideological base. and for a community of color, we get ignored. people aren't even talking to us at all. and so that is why we need to have some mechanism to bring everyone together, to have real conversations, to have conversations between commitments of color, to have -- communities of color, to have conversations with different religions, different ethnicities, people of different sexual orientation. we need to have these conversations in a reasonable manner. unless we have reasonable redistricting standards, that will not happen. so what we need is not to have politicians try to enrich and maintain their status. what we need is reasonable standards going forward into the 2020 census and the redistricting plans that will happen thereafter. thank you. [cheers and applause]

>> show me what democracy looks like, this is what democracy looks like. >> show me what democracy looks like? this is what democracy looks like. >> show me what democracy looks like, this is what democracy looks like. >> show me what democracy looks like, this is what democracy looks like. >> show me what democracy look like, this is what democracy look like. >> please join me in welcoming our next speaker, the representative of michigan's congressional district 5. [applause] >> thank you all very much, and thanks for being here. i'm a member of congress. i represent flint, michigan. [applause] this is a community that knows something about the consequences of having their democratic rights taken away from them. >> sure do. >> and that's really what this argument is about. the democratic rights of americans. what we have in my home state is a set of maps that distorts

public sentiment. you know, michigan is one of those purple states, and we know that they're always going to be in play, those states like michigan, wisconsin, pennsylvania, ohio, the ones we talk about. each one of them have had their democratic rights distorted, vix vix -- individuals this those states, their democratic rights distorted by maps that emphasize one ideology or one party and de-emphasizes another. that's not democracy. you know, people often wonder why can't congress act on the big questions that we face as a country? why can't we get common sense bills to deal with immigration reform? because the congress is not a reflection of the body politic. the congress is not a reflection of public sentiment.

why can't we get common sense gun safety legislation that most americans support? because congress does not represent the views of the american people. they have been distorted by maps that are intended to emphasize a particular ideology, a particular point of view, a particular party. that is wrong. that is wrong! and it has to stop, and it has to stop now. if we are going to be a democracy, we have to have a government that represents the broad views of the american people. and when in my state we have this 50/50 state that has nine republicans and five democrats in that house of representatives, that has a state legislature with 63 republicans out of just over 100, that has a state senate -- this is a purple state -- with 27 republicans and 11 democrats, no wonder, no wonder the big

questions that we face can't get answered in a way consistent with the wishes, with the feelings, with the sentiments, with the needs of the american people. it's because our maps, our gerrymandering is a carnival image of the body politic. it emphasizes some aspects and de-emphasizes others. this is wrong. this is wrong. [applause] this is wrong. >> wrong! >> this is wrong. >> wrong! [applause] and it has to end now. and since the legislature, the legislators who benefit from the maps are the ones who draw the maps, this is the building we have to turn to to have our rights restored, and we're calling on this court. democrats and republicans coming together to restore that democratic principle that is the foundation of this country. we all deserve equal representation, and unless this court acts, we may not have that. thank you for your voices, thank you for being here. let's keep up this fight.

thank you all. [cheers and applause] >> equal districts under law! equal districts under law! equal districts under law! >> equal districts -- >> under law! >> equal districts under law. >> please join me in welcoming representative lowenthal from koh california's district 47. [applause] >> thank you, everyone, for being here. first, before we actually begin, i also just, you know, have been stunned and really want to pray and have in the thoughts all those who survived, all those that were traumatized and, unfortunately, those that passed away in the horrors that took place in las vegas. it was just terrible. that's another issue that we as the congress needs to deal with,

and that's gun safety. you know, first i want to thank a person that's inside today, and that's governor arnold. schwarzenegger from california. the governor led the battle -- [applause] to put on an independent redistricting commission on the, as an initiative for the people of california to vote on. it was overwhelmingly passed, and california has an independent redistricting commission. [applause] a little bit about myself. i also, i'm a democrat in a very blue state. i participated as a new member in the california assembly in 2001 in the redistricting that took place in 2001. i was so appalled by the fact that we were creating districts -- even in a blue state -- that represented protection of the incumbency, it was an incumbency protection rule rather than trying to respond to communities of interest.

i then joined in 2002 a small group of bipartisan members. i took the lead in introducing an independent redistricting commission in california 2003. that's why this is a long battle. that was almost 15 years ago when we started that. at that time i couldn't even get a second. >> the california legislature. finally, by 2005 and '6 we were able in california, i was able to move by a two-thirds vote an independent redistricting commission. unfortunately, like what happens here, the bill was never taken up in the california assembly after we had it ready to go on the ballot. and then governor schwarzenegger led to have it put on by petitions, and the overwhelming number of people in california supported an independent commission. when i came -- when i was elected to the congress in 2012, i realized that we were not going to create a system where

people trusted government any longer unless we did independent commissions throughout the nation. my first bill was let the people draw the lines in 2013 which was to create and mandate that we would have independent redistricting throughout the nation. that bill was never heard in the congress, like a lot of other bills that are never heard in the congress. in 2015 the numbers of my colleagues and myself, i took the leadership in making sure that we get a bipartisan amicus brief to support the arizona independent redistricting commission. when that case, when the arizona state legislature sued the arizona redistricting commission saying it was not legal to have independent redistricting commissions -- which would have impacted my state also, california, and a number of other states. fortunately, this supreme court said, no, independent redistricting commissions are legal under the constitution and

that it is, it was their opinion to uphold and support them. then what happened after that we're seeing today, and i helped to work on and tried to lead the amicus brief also to get republicans and democrats to support a brief that says gerrymandering, excessive partisanship is unconstitutional. and we stood up. it is not -- this is, this, we are never going to reestablish support for our government if our representatives do not represent the will of the people, but represent the will of the political parties. today is a critical day for the courts to take up. this is probably the most important gerrymandering case that has ever been decided by the u.s. supreme court. i am proud to be here to support the court's attempt to really define what is excessive redistricting, excessive partisanship, how do we measure it and how do we insure that in

the elections coming up in the next year that we do not have partisan gerrymandering and that we outlaw gerrymandering. that's what we're all here for, that's what we all stand for. this court stands for democracy, we are here to promote and support democracy which is being ripped away from the american public. this is a critical day, and i thank all of you for being here to show support. let's return democracy to the people and take it out of the hands of the political parties. thank you, everybody. [cheers and applause] >> what do we want? >> representation. >> when do we want it? >> now! >> what do we want? >> representation. >> when do we want it? >> now! >> what do we want? >> representation. >> when do we want? >> now! >> please join me in welcoming our next speaker, we have chief executive officer of the league of women voters.

[cheers and applause] >> good morning, everyone! >> good morning! >> the league of women voters is in the house for this important issue. [cheers and applause] what an important day it is today or more our democracy. behind us in the highest court in the land nine men and women are eagerly listening to arguments about an issue that has plagued our election system for far too long. gerrymandering. it is a big word. but its meaning, as has already been noted, is quite simple. this is the process of politicians unfairly drawing electoral maps to benefit themselves and their political parties. not the voters. the result? disfunction, mistrust -- disfunction, mistrust and public policies that do not represent

the will of the people. in wisconsin, in north carolina, in ohio, in pennsylvania and all across the country, there are some real crazy electoral maps, wouldn't you agree? >> yeah! >> districts that don't make sense, that cross school districts, that break up communities. and for what? so that politicians pick their electorate? not voters deciding who should represent them? it is high time we take charge of this and put an end to partisan gerrymandering. and it can be done. in california the league of women voters was part of a successful statewide referendum that ended gerrymandering of political districts. as already noted, we formed a coalition across the political spectrum, the business sector,

labor organizations and concerned members of the community all came together the create a ballot measure. the intent? to be fair to voters. that is what voters wanted, more equality in the system. so working across party lines, we formed an independent commission that redrew the electoral map in california. and it restored the public trust. the districts were drawn for the voters, not for the special interests or any political -- particular political party. around the country in other states, both parties have taken advantage of partisan gerrymandering when they are in power. in maryland democrats have openly admitted to drawing district lines to bicep fete their own party, and -- to benefit their own party, and that has always been part of the game. the party in charge controls the map. but today is the beginning of the end. [cheers and applause]

let's -- no, let's do that again. today is the beginning of the end. [cheers and applause] as i stand here speaking to you, those nine justices are listening to arguments that will impact the boundaries that are drawn in the near future. we know that partisan gerrymandering is wrong, and it has even been deemed unconstitutional. but until now there hasn't been a test. it's up to the justices to set a standard, to determine when partisan gerrymandering is so extreme that it violates the constitution. inside that building behind us real voters are making their case that partisan gerrymandering has denied them a voice in their states' election. those brave voters are not alone. extreme partisanship is harmful to voters across the country, and it is harmful to our democracy. this case will literally shape

the face of this country. we have a census coming up in a few short years. now is the time to set the parameters that help create the maps which strengthen our communities and draw districts that reflect their populations. it is up to the supreme court to create ground rules that will help restore trust in our electoral system and create a more democratic and fair, fairer country. this case, make no mistake, is about fairness. fairness to the voters. americans deserve fair, equal representation in our democracy. why? because voters should select their elected representatives. [applause] voters should select their elected representatives. [applause] >> yes. >> elected representatives should not choose their voters. let's give the power back where

it belongs. let's give the power back to the voters. let's end partisan gerrymandering. thank you. [cheers and applause] >> power to the people! >> power to the people. [laughter] >> we're tired of your tampering, stop your gerrymandering. >> we're tired of your tampering, stop your gerrymandering. >> we're tired of your tampering -- >> stop your gerrymandering. >> stop your gerrymander -- [laughter] please join me in welcoming the vp for legal progress from the center for american progress, michelle. [applause] >> hi, everyone, how are you? so i you've got to talk back to me, because we're at a rally in front of the supreme court. how you doing? [cheers and applause] >> all right, all right! now, the reason we are here on today is that nine justices, one

of whom many people think is sitting in a stolen seat -- but that's for another day -- [laughter] but nine justices today are hearing a case of fundamental importance to our democracy. i come before you as the vice president at center for american progress action fund, and we have something to say about this case. gerrymandering leads to skewed representation and legislators who are less responsive to the will of voters. politicians are picking their voters instead of the other way around. redistrictings has broken our democracy -- redistricting has broken our democracy. >> yes, it has. >> but scotus has an opportunity to fix it. we know that gerrymandered legislators are -- legislatures are enacting policies that their voters don't support.

how do we know? well, let me give you some facts. i know we live in a time of alternative facts, but let me break some down for you today. the expansion of medicaid is something that the majority of voters support, but 19 states have refused federal funding. as a result, 2.6 million people have denied access to affordable health care insurance. why? because their legislators don't represent the will of the people. >> that's right! >> we are here on the eve of the las vegas tragedy. the greatest, largest mass shooting in our country. and yet we know that 90%, 90% of the american people support common sense gun reform. what does that mean? become checks. we know that -- background checks.

we know that 82% of trump voters support background checks. but what do we have? legislators right there who refuse to work on the behalf of the american people. enough is enough! [cheers and applause] we see state legislators that are preempting local laws, that expand civil rights and protections and minimum wage increases. why? because our representatives aren't representing us. but today there are democrats here and there are republicans here and there are independents here and there are people from red states and blue states and there are people who are trans-partisan, and there are people who are standing up and saying enough is enough, we need fair maps -- >> the rally in front of the supreme court earlier today. you can watch all of our coverage of the speakers online.

take you live now to the capitol for remarks by lawmakers, senate majority leader mitch mcconnell speaking now. >> constituents this week here in the senate. the senate budget committee is going forward with the budget. it'll be marked up in committee this week. this budget, as you know, is targeted toward allowing comprehensive tax reform. because of the difficulty of getting nominees confirmed, i'veed had to file cloture on four of them, all of which in different times would have been confirmed on a voice vote. finally, this morning i met with representatives from puerto rico and the virgin islands in my office. members of the legislature and both of those places to go over their needs, and we anticipate a supplemental request from the administration in mid october for additional funding. with that, let me turn it over to my colleagues.

>> thank you, leader. well, this is a difficult week for the country, obviously, with what happened in las vegas. we continue to see through all these horrible stories some of the very best of america come to the surface as well. i know we all want to keep, continue to keep them in our prayers. victims are sharing stories of their loved ones, and this is a process that's going to take a while for us to heal from. but as the leader said, we're continuing to work here on the issues that are important to our economy and to our country. one of which is tax reform. and, you know, we rolled out a framework last week that delivers tax relief to hard working american families through lower rates, through doubling of the standard deduction and through expansion of the child tax credit. it focuses on making our businesses more competitive in the global marketplace, allowing them to compete and win against other countries like china and