I received an email from Senator Bill Nelson today entitled, Congressional panel coming to Florida in probe of voting laws. This is good news for the people of Florida and below is Senator Nelson’s full email message. This Congressional panel is the result of Senator Nelson’s request that he made just a little over a week ago.

On Nov 9, 2011 I passed along an email from Senator Nelson entitled The Right to Vote Is Under Serious Attack Right Now. In this message he explained his concern and stated that he had requested a congressional investigation to see if Florida’s law was part of a plan that led to similar voting law changes in more than a dozen other states this year. I am glad to see that he has received a quick response to his request.

Sent: Wed 11/16/2011 12:02 PM

If you want to send a message to Senator Nelson, please Click here

Dear Friends,

Late yesterday, I received word that a congressional panel has agreed to my request to investigate new voting restrictions passed earlier this year by Florida's Legislature. Florida's law cut early voting days and limited voter registration drives, among other changes. Some believe its passage was part of a broader voter-suppression effort in more than a dozen states that passed voting limits this year.

Sen. Dick Durbin, the Illinois lawmaker in charge of the Senate Judiciary subcommittee, said in a letter to me yesterday he’ll hold an investigative field hearing in Florida, in part, because Florida’s new law "will almost certainly disenfranchise a wide swath of the state's young, minority, senior, disabled, rural, and low income voters."

“In a democracy as vibrant as ours,” Sen. Durbin wrote, “there is perhaps no right that is so sacred or fundamental than the right to vote. I am deeply troubled by the disenfranchising impact of these recently passed state voting laws.”

You can click here to read his letter and my letter requesting the investigation.

I’ll be sure to let you know when and where the hearing will be. Thanks for your interest in this issue.

End of Email message.

It is important that we acknowledge that we are ultimately responsible for who we elect into office. Be involved and stay informed.

On another subject I want to mention that on the website Whitehouse.gov/petitions - We The People, there is a petition titled Reject the Keystone XL Pipeline. Update: Today, November 17, 2011, a response to this petition was created and can be viewed on the same page.