Liz Cheney’s Electoral Count Act Bill to Stop a Jan. 6 Repeat

The good news is that the House now has a bill updating the Electoral Counts Act of 1887, the antiquated statute implicated in the January 6 riot in the Capitol. Even better, the legislation introduced by Republicans this week Liz Cheney and Democrat Zoe Lofgren reads like an improvement on the Senate version in some respects.

The House plan says the vice president’s role when Congress evaluates the Electoral College is “ministerial.” The CP cannot “order a delay in the count” of his own accord. This parallels President Trump’s claim in 2020 that Mike Pence could take control of the joint session. Mr. Trump’s legal reasoning relied on a lack of clarity in the 12th Amendment that cannot be remedied by law. Still, it would help if Mr. Trump’s theory were refuted by law and explicit process by Congress.