Sinema pops Democrats' filibuster trial balloon on voting rights

[Jose Garcia]

This discussion thread was locked as off-topic by Spazito (a host of the Latest Breaking News forum).

Source: Politico

Kyrsten Sinema supports the elections reform bill that Democrats are considering a year-end push to pass. She doesn't support a shortcut around the filibuster to get it done.

The Arizona moderate is making clear that she intends to keep protecting the Senate’s 60-vote requirement on most legislation and she isn’t ready to entertain changing rules to pass sweeping elections or voting legislation with a simple majority. Her Democratic colleagues have been discussing those revisions as they weigh dropping their focus on President Joe Biden’s $1.7 trillion climate and social spending bill and pivoting to voting rights, though it’s not clear that avenue will be any more successful.

In a statement to POLITICO, a spokesperson said that Sinema “continues to support the Senate's 60-vote threshold, to protect the country from repeated radical reversals in federal policy which would cement uncertainty, deepen divisions, and further erode Americans’ confidence in our government.” Since joining the Senate in 2019, Sinema’s been a fierce defender of the filibuster and warned that reversing it could lead to terrible outcomes for Democrats down the line.

Sinema continues to support the Freedom to Vote Act, which was negotiated with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), as well as the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, even as she raises questions about how to pass those bills in an evenly divided Senate. Democratic senators have mostly focused on lobbying Manchin to try and sway him to pass elections legislation with a simple majority, but Sinema isn’t there yet either.

Read more: Sinema pops Democrats' filibuster trial balloon on voting rights

[onecaliberal]

1. Cue the apologists.

[LonePirate]

2. If she does not support removing the filibuster for it, then she does not support the bill.

I wouldn't expect that right wing hack site Politico to make that point but other news media need to be hammering that home. Her refusal to modify the filibuster is her statement that she does not want the bill to pass. The news media in this country is pathetic for not seeing and stating that.

[BlueIdaho]

4. Exactly

She is trying to have her cake and eat it too. It’s not working with this Democrat.

[Autumn]

9. Saying she does not support the bill is redundant, there is no need to state

what is obvious.

[BradAllison]

3. She doesn't want her good friends like John Cornyn and Tim Scott to lose their jobs. n/m

[PoliticAverse]

5. Did she support the filibuster carve out for raising the debt limit that just passed?

Senator Markey Statement After Senate Raises the Debt Ceiling Utilizing Filibuster Carve Out
https://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/senator-markey-statement-after-senate-raises-the-debt-ceiling-utilizing-filibuster-carve-out

[aocommunalpunch]

6. So many self-inflicted injuries these days.

Occam’s getting a workout.

[Mickju]

7. She could end up being responsible for the end of democracy in this country.

[BradAllison]

8. She doesn't give a fuck. n/m

[TomDaisy]

10. let's stop splitting hairs - she is filibustering, not the GOP

[BeyondGeography]

11. Go to AZ, hold a town hall on voting rights and invite Her Majesty

Time to stop fucking around with these poseurs.

[Takket]

15. this!!!!!!!!!!!

Brilliant idea. Biden should lead it, with voting rights advocates. Make her sit there in front of her voters while they all explain how she is stabbing them in the back to help the gop.

[Joinfortmill]

21. Oh, boy. Pass the wine.

[StClone]

12. Politically she is done, as a functioning pol it is over...results lost cause

[Lucky Luciano]

13. A moot point from her.

[Takket]

14. " reversing it could lead to terrible outcomes for Democrats down the line"

when we lose the House and rethugs have a super-majority in the Senate because Democrats are shut out from voting and/or geryrmandered out of existence, we'll be able to look back fondly upon the windswept hellscape that is left of our former democracy and be able to say "at least the filibuster still exists"

No one LEGITIMATELY would believe anyone thinks the filibuster is more important than voting rights. that is her bullshit excuse because can't say "i'm taking a massive pile of money from the gop to do their bidding"

[PlanetBev]

16. Without the voting right's bill

The “terrible outcomes” are already here and will be here for decades to come.

[LogicFirst]

17. Sinema is a disgrace to Arizona. I won't even go into the local lying ads that are already on.

[GB_RN]

18. I Just Can't Even...

This Sinema show has gone on too long.

Yes, I'm WELL aware that she's not the only one that's throwing a monkey wrench into the gears of government and democracy right now...

[LiberalFighter]

19. I refuse to believe anyone that says one thing but refuses to make it happen.

[Joinfortmill]

20. Sigh. Holding my tongue.

[pfitz59]

22. Calling her a 'Moderate' is a lie.

She has turned her back on the millions of Arizonans who worked their butts off to get her elected. Perhaps a once-in-a-generation chance to stop GQP Fascism, AKA 'minority' rule, and she plays cutesy games while raking in Corporate Kash.

[Lunabell]

23. Is she still in the Democratic party?

Asking for a friend.

[Spazito]

24. *LOCKING*

Host consensus is this OP doesn't meet the criteria in the SOP for this forum:

Important news of national interest only. No analysis or opinion pieces.

This would be fine in the General Discussion Forum.