Democratic "No" votes on the Debt Limit agreement (46)

[femmedem]

12. Rep. Jayapal was clear that she would have voted Yes if her vote was necessary for it to pass.

Last edited Thu Jun 1, 2023, 08:51 AM - Edit history (1)

I saw her on MSNBC and she was clear that the Democrats would not have allowed the U.S. to default and that she would have voted Yes if it was necessary to prevent a default. But knowing that the bill would pass, she felt it was also important to have a significant number of Democrats voicing their opposition to certain provisions within the bill.

Additionally, Lawrence O'Donnell pointed out that the Democrats voting no were playing an important role by strengthening Biden's hand in future negotiations. He says Biden had to repeatedly say to McCarthy that certain items were off the table because he wouldn't be able to muster enough Democratic support to avoid default. If all the Democrats had voted yes for this necessary but imperfect bill, McCarthy would be more willing to hold firm on harsher, more draconian Republican priorities.

He lays this out beginning around 4:30: