Washington, D.C.—Today, on a bipartisan basis the House of Representatives passed H.R. 5314, the Protecting Our Democracy Act (PODA). In reaction to PODA’s passage, Soren Dayton, policy advocate at Protect Democracy, released the following statement:

“Today the House of Representatives passed legislation that will strengthen democratic guardrails against presidential abuses of power and bolster Congress’ ability to check executive overreach after decades of ceding its authority to presidents of both parties. During that time, and especially under the previous administration, we have seen how presidents can abuse the office to protect and enrich themselves and their family and friends, target their political opponents, and solicit foreign interference to help their election prospects.  These landmark reforms will  prevent future presidents of either party from undermining our system of checks and balances, and mark a critical step toward restoring the American people’s faith in our government.

We are grateful for the work of Chairman Schiff, Speaker Pelosi and all the Committee Chairs, co-sponsors, and partners who have supported this legislation. As PODA moves to the Senate, we look forward to passing this critical legislation.”

For more resources and to understand what’s in PODA, click here.