OF COURSE HE IS

Josh Hawley Is the Lone Senator to Vote Against Hate Crimes Bill

The bill, designed to address the increase of violence and discrimination against Asian Americans during the coronavirus pandemic, passed the Senate on Thursday.

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), the Trump-loving conservative who voted to overturn the election, is at it again. He was the lone senator to oppose the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act on Thursday, which passed the Senate in an overwhelmingly bipartisan 94-1 vote. The bill, designed to address rising violence and discrimination against Asian Americans, would expedite the Justice Department’s review on hate crimes, designate a DOJ official to oversee those efforts, and beef up local resources to increase awareness. “I’m just concerned the bill is hugely broad, hugely open-ended,” Hawley previously told reporters. “It’s just, you know, the ability and power to define crimes, to define incidents going forward, and collect all that data, it just seemed hugely, hugely over broad.” (The bill does not “define” any new crimes.)

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said as a “proud husband of an Asian American woman, I think this discrimination against Asian Americans is a real problem.” The bill still needs to pass the House and be signed by President Biden.