President Biden took a moment to attack efforts by GOP-led states to restrict voting as he arrived in Geneva, Switzerland on the eve of his highly anticipated summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“We’re seeing a coordinated attack on voting rights in this country. It’s Jim Crow in the 21st century, and it must end,” Biden tweeted. “Congress must enact legislation to make it easier for all eligible Americans to access the ballot box and prevent attacks on the sacred right to vote.”
Republicans and Democrats have generally observed a tradition that “politics stops at the water’s edge,” avoiding partisan attacks while overseas. Biden’s campaign criticized former President Donald Trump when he attacked Biden while overseas in 2019. Biden has been in Europe since last Wednesday meeting with world leaders.
At the same time, a group of Texas Democrats headed to Washington, D.C. to meet with congressional Democrats and Vice President Kamala Harris as part of a pitch for Congress to pass sweeping voting rights legislation. The group of Texas lawmakers staged a dramatic walkout back at home just before midnight on May 31.
