Mace: We Must Strengthen Our Democratic Society & Protect the Constitution

WASHINWASHINGTON — Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Subcommittee Ranking Member Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) opened today’s hearing by emphasizing that threats to our democracy and Constitution have been echoed so frequently that it has lost its impact and become a tool used to advance a political agenda. She emphasized that open and honest debate is protected by the Constitution and condemned those who censor lawful speech on partisan grounds. Subcommittee Ranking Member Mace closed by expressing hope that Americans will continue to confront rising discrimination and violence to ensure all citizens have the security they need to prosper.

Below are Subcommittee Ranking Member Mace’s remarks as prepared:

Thank you, Chairman Raskin.

Americans of all races, religions, and creeds deserve to achieve their American dream in a secure society where they don’t have to fear harm simply on account of who they are, where they live, or where they came from.

We hear a lot about threats to our democracy and Constitution these days.  That warning is used so often to advance a political agenda that it has lost some of the impact it should have.

Let me be clear: the only alternatives to our Constitutional system of government are a descent into authoritarianism or the embrace of anarchy.

Chairman Raskin- You and I agree that there are serious threats to our democratic ideals lurking on the horizon.  We took an oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic…”.

Yet there are those who would seek to undermine the Constitution for their own ends, and evil people who want to damage our Republic and harm our citizens. 

America was founded on the idea – enshrined in our Declaration of Independence, and one we have ever since been struggling to achieve for all Americans – that we are endowed by our “…Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Our democratic ideals demand that we engage in a robust debate about how to solve the most challenging problems facing our country.  This necessarily means we will have disagreements, and passions will flair.

Our Constitution and the rule of law provide for an open and honest debate with people who we disagree with.  Our viewpoints may be met with strong criticism, but they must never be met with violence or censorship, both of which threaten this American experiment.

Firstly, we must not be tempted to misuse power to silence those who we disagree with or censor lawful speech. 

I am a firm believer in the concept that free speech creates human interactions within the marketplace of ideas and enables us to, as one witness who appeared before our subcommittee in April explained, “feel like we can talk to people who disagree with us fervently to learn that they are people of goodwill who often want the same good things for society, but just have different ways of getting there.”  

Secondly, we must recognize that violence as a solution to problems or as an expression of extreme and hateful ideas—whether from the right or the left or anywhere in between—cannot be tolerated as it sows fear, suppresses civil discourse, and comes at a great human cost.

My district knows this truth all too well, as we continue to mourn the 9 churchgoers murdered by a racist domestic terrorist at the Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in 2015.

Racially motivated violent extremists are assessed to be particularly lethal and dangerous, especially as they are more likely to conduct lone wolf attacks.

White supremacist violence is a very real threat, and so are the threats emanating from other pernicious and racist ideologies.

We must confront a spike in antisemitism in the United States, with documented cases of targeted harassment and assaults against Jewish Americans on the rise in recent years.

Antisemitic ideologies lead to violence against Jewish people.

I condemn antisemitism wherever it is found- whether at a dinner party or echoed in the halls of Congress.

We must also confront rising discrimination and violence against Asian-Americans.

Short-lived hashtag campaigns are no substitute for bringing our law enforcement resources to bear to detect, disrupt, and prosecute those who seek to do violence, whatever their motivation may be.

We must strengthen our democratic society and ensure that we are doing everything in our power to protect the Constitution, the rule of law, and ensure Americans have the security they need to prosper and achieve their American Dream. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I yield back.