Sen.Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., plans to introduce a bill Thursday that would ban the president from sending armed military or federal agents to polling sites during American elections.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.The legislation, Slotkin said in a statement, would prevent President Donald Trump from “weaponizing our military and armed federal officers to interfere in our elections.”The bill is backed by several other Democratic senators, including those representing electoral battleground states, like Sens.
Ruben Gallego and Mark Kelly of Arizona, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Raphael Warnock of Georgia and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin.NBC News has reached out to the White House for comment on the bill.Earlier this year, Trump said in a podcast appearance that Republicans “ought to nationalize the voting” in at least 15 places.Later, in an NBC News interview, the president pointed to cities in Georgia, Michigan and Pennsylvania — all battleground states — where Republicans should take over election systems.His remarks drew outcry from local officials from both parties in those states.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., also pushed back on the idea of federalizing elections in the wake of the president’s remarks.The comments, which came months after Trump deployed members of the National Guard to cities run by Democratic mayors over their objections, sparked fears among Democrats that the president could deploy armed military members to polling sites to depress turnout in certain cities.According to Slotkin, the president is already prohibited under federal law from deploying armed military members or agents to polling sites, with one notable exception: “to repel armed enemies of the United States.” Legal experts also note the prohibition against such action by the president.This bill, the “Protect Our Polls Act,” would require congressional approval for the president to s...