On Thursday, the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) filed a federal lawsuit challenging Biden’s Executive Order 14019, which it says attempts to turn federal agencies into partisan voter registration machines.
AFPI is joined in the lawsuit against the Biden Administration by Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX), Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-TX), and Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R-Ohio).
Biden’s executive order requires all federal agencies to actively recruit and register voters, as well as to partner with third parties in its efforts. Both the details of the order’s implementation and the names of the partners selected have been shrouded in secrecy by the Biden Administration, leading to concerns that the order is being used in unlawful and partisan means to recruit likely Democrat voters and sway November’s elections.
“The Biden Administration is once again weaponizing federal agencies, this time to steer taxpayer resources to liberal activist groups who want to sway the election,” LaRose said in an AFPI statement announcing the lawsuit. “This is a cynical attempt to turn government agencies into a Democratic turnout machine, and it’s wrong. That’s why I’m joining this lawsuit and working to hold the administration accountable.”
“We are pushing back on Biden’s unlawful attempt to weaponize federal agencies into a leftwing election operation that opens the doors to noncitizen voting and all manner of lawbreaking,” said Ken Blackwell, AFPI Chair of the Center for Election Integrity. “Congress has not authorized or funded any of this, so we seek a court order to stop it by simply enforcing federal law.”
Because the elections are rapidly approaching, the plaintiffs are requesting urgent injunctive relief to prevent compounding of the alleged violations. They are asking the court to declare the executive order unconstitutional and unlawful, as well as to preliminarily and permanently enjoin each agency from implementing the executive order.
In particular, the lawsuit charges that the executive order violates both the Hatch Act, which restricts political activities by federal employees, and the Anti-Deficiency Act, which prohibits money from being expended from the Treasury without authorization from Congress. The lawsuit also charges that the executive order lacks statutory authority and usurps powers granted exclusively to the states under the U.S. Constitution.
AFPI’s lawsuit is the latest in a growing number court challenges filed against Biden’s purported ”voter access” executive order, joining the ranks of lawsuits such as that filed by 27 Pennsylvania lawmakers.