Cynical Sinema Trying To Have It Both Ways on The For The People Act – There Is A ‘Deadline For Democracy’ (Updated)

President Joe Biden ramped up his push to move his legislative agenda forward in private meetings Monday with two key Democratic lawmakers — Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema and West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin — in separate meetings on Monday, according to a White House official. Biden meets with key Democratic senators as he pushes for path on voting, infrastructure:

The two lawmakers represent a crucial players in Biden’s efforts to move his $4 trillion economic agenda. Both have insisted Democrats pursue a bipartisan track on infrastructure talks and are part of a group of 21 Republicans and Democrats currently in talks with Biden over a plan that includes $579 billion in new spending. Sinema spoke with the bipartisan group after talking with Biden.

“The President thanked each senator for their engagement toward making historic investments in economic growth, middle class jobs, and the clean energy economy, and told them he was encouraged by what has taken shape but that he still has questions about the policy as well as the means for financing the bipartisan group’s proposal,” the official said.

[I]n their Monday meeting, Biden also discussed voting legislation with Manchin, just one day before the Senate is slated to hold a procedural vote on a sweeping voting rights measure, the official said. Manchin, who opposes the original measure, has floated compromise language and is in talks with Democrats on the issue.

Biden expressed his “sincere appreciation” for Manchin’s efforts to this point, but also underscored his view of the urgency of the issue, the official said.

“The President conveyed that he sees voting rights as one of the most urgent issues facing our nation during his administration, and made it clear how important he thinks it is that the Senate find a path forward on this issue,” the official said.

The procedural vote is expected to be blocked by Republicans, who are unified in their opposition to the bill and Manchin’s compromise language.

Biden’s discussions with the two moderate Democrats carry an importance beyond the ongoing bipartisan infrastructure talks. Biden has called on congressional Democrats to start work on a parallel process that would allow for many of his priorities to pass without Republican votes.

In order for that effort to have a pathway forward in a Senate where Democrats have the barest of majorities, Manchin and Sinema would have to be on board.

The two senators have been vocal in recent weeks about their support for keeping Senate filibuster rules in place.

Joe Manchin in a private call with the No Labels organization leaked to the media indicated he was open to some reforms of the filibuster rule. Leaked Audio Of Sen. Joe Manchin Call With Billionaire Donors Provides Rare Glimpse Of Dealmaking On Filibuster And January 6 Commission.

But Arizona’s freshman senator, Kyrsten Sinema, despite the private invite to the White House to speak to the president, repaid the favor by digging in her stiletto high heels and penned an op-ed for the Washington Post doubling down on her utterly ignorant defense of the Senate filibuster rule. Kyrsten Sinema: We have more to lose than gain by ending the filibuster.

UPDATE:

Filibuster supporters be like: we should let Republicans destroy democracy now because at some indeterminate time in the future they may try again.

— Mondaire Jones (@MondaireJones) June 22, 2021

sinema’s argument amounts to an argument against the exercise of power at all since, if you use it, what happens when the other side does too?

— b-boy bouiebaisse (@jbouie) June 22, 2021

Some thoughts on Kyrsten Sinema's defense of the filibuster: https://t.co/OjijCQOPhB

— Matt Ford (@fordm) June 22, 2021

.@SenatorSinema has accidentally exposed the profound weakness of the pro-filibuster stance. She raises the prospect of legislative majorities curbing voting, without admitting this is *already* upon us. She is consigning us to that very fate. My response:https://t.co/18GCJwn49w

— Greg Sargent (@ThePlumLineGS) June 22, 2021

Steve Benen breaks down her ignorant defense of the Senate filibuster rule. Sinema’s case against the filibuster isn’t getting any better.

What is the end game for this one term senator who will not win her Democratic primary in 2024? Does she support the enemies of democracy in the Sedition Party? Sinema is clearly not representing the will of her constituents in Arizona. These Senators Are Not Representing The Will Of The Voters In Their States: “The For The People Act is extremely popular … In Arizona, 84% of respondents supported the bill, with a remarkable 73% supporting it strongly.” “In Arizona, the bill earned support from 78% of registered Republicans, and 81% of registered Independent or unaffiliated voters.”

Sinema is most definitely not representing the interests of the activists in the Arizona Democratic Party, the people who did the hard work of door knocking and phone banking to get her elected. This is how she repays them for their hard work? With a betrayal on voting rights?

The Senate is set to vote today on whether to proceed to debate on S.1 The For The People Act, with all eyes on Senate Democrats as they try to project unity around the entirety of their expansive agenda. The Hill’s Morning Report, Democrats await Manchin decision on voting rights bill:

The top priority for Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) is to have all 50 Democrats on the same page and back the bill when it hits the floor. Enter Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), with whom Democratic leaders have been negotiating for weeks in hopes of uniting Democrats behind their spotlight on Republican opposition.

As of Monday afternoon, top Senate Democrats were unsure how Manchin would vote, according to The Hill’s Jordain Carney. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), the top Democratic vote counter, told reporters that he was “hoping” the West Virginia centrist would jump on board. “I just don’t know yet,” Durbin said.

Remember, this is just a vote on whether to begin debate on the bill. Joe Manchin can offer his objections and amendments to the bill only if the Senate actually begins debate on the bill. Senate Republicans do not want to debate their organized assault on the right to vote in state legislatures or have to defend their anti-democratic actions based upon the Big Lie. The slow-motion insurrection is continuing.

This cloture vote is going to fail today for certain. There are not ten Republican “patriotic senators” who will vote for cloture, as Joe Manchin so naively believes. The real question is whether all 50 senators in the Democratic Caucus will vote to just begin debate on S.1 the For The People Act. They had damn well better!

The question then is what happens next? The Democratic Party needs to meet and to decide what to do about the Senate filibuster rule in order to use the majority that American voters gave them to enact the Democratic agenda. They cannot allow themselves to be held hostage by a tyranny of the minority who represent a minority of voters in the U.S. simply because of an archaic Senate rule that the “Grim Reaper of Democracy,” Mitch McConnell, has weaponized into a weapon of mass destruction against democracy.

"The 50 Democratic senators who support the For the People Act (or least Manchin’s compromise) represent 43 million more Americans than the 50 Republican senators who oppose it."@AriBerman, citing new @amprog data:https://t.co/8g7sQBqyIT

— Greg Sargent (@ThePlumLineGS) June 22, 2021

Senator Kyrsten Sinema is cynically trying to have it both ways. “I’m a cosponsor of the For The People Act and I voted to proceed to debate on the bill, but hey, rules are rules, and I will not budge on the Senate filibuster rule,” ensuring that the tyranny of the minority, the Sedition Party, has veto power over a voting rights bill that the American public overwhelmingly supports. This woman clearly does not understand “the fierce urgency of now.”

The Progressive activist organization Indivisible intends to bring that “fierce urgency of now” to Senator Sinema during the two week recess the Senate has scheduled for the July 4th holiday. This is an all-hands-on-deck moment for the deadline for democracy.

Note: I have been informed, repeatedly, that Sinema’s office is sending constituent calls to voice mail, and that her voice mail is full so that you cannot leave a message. The late great John Lewis would advise you to take aggressive action: you will have to occupy Sinema’s senate office in the state with sit-ins, and notify the media ahead of time so that you can get the media attention that you desire. Old school tactics still work.

Indivisible press release, 70+ Organizations Launch ‘Deadline For Democracy,’ Massive July Recess Cross-Movement Mobilization:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 14, 2021
Contact: Kenny Palmer | press@indivisible.org

Campaign driving constituent rallies, protests, calls, and more to pressure lawmakers to pass the For the People Act before August

Washington, DC — Today, Indivisible, Declaration for American Democracy Coalition, Stand Up America, End Citizens United Action Fund, Common Cause, Fix Our Senate, Advancement Project, Transformative Justice Coalition, Just Democracy, and over 70 other organizations are launching Deadline For Democracy (website), a cross-movement mobilization plan for the July Recess demanding lawmakers act urgently to defend democracy and pass the For the People Act by August:

“We’re running out of time to pass the For the People Act. Senator Schumer has said repeatedly that ‘failure is not an option’ and we’re taking him at his word, ” said Ezra Levin, co-founder and co-executive director of Indivisible. “The 1964 Civil Rights Act overcame a 54-day filibuster to become law. The 1965 Voting Rights Act took a month of floor debate before overcoming the threat of the filibuster. Then, as now, the Jim Crow filibuster did not go down quietly. We recognize the historic moment we are in, and we’re mobilizing like the future of the Republic depends on it. This is the Deadline for Democracy, and everyday Americans from every corner of the country and across movements will be taking action to defend our democracy. The fight has not yet begun, but it’s coming, and we’re bringing it.”

“The freedom to vote is under attack across the country and the best way to fight back is for Congress to take up and pass the For the People Act,” said Tiffany Muller, president of End Citizens United / Let America Vote Action Fund. “With Deadline Democracy, we’re going to send a clear message that Americans across the country demand their Senators do whatever it takes to pass this critical legislation to protect voting rights, end dark money, and put power in the hands of the people, not big donors and special interests.”

“We refuse to allow white supremacists to dismantle our democracy to maintain their own power,” said Judith Browne Dianis, Executive Director of Advancement Project National Office. “The strategy of voting rights opponents is to limit access to the ballot box, shift power from Black and Brown communities to reliably conservative legislatures, and maintain the ability of billionaires to buy elections. It is clear that the way to combat such attacks on our democracy is to  ensure everyone has the right to vote in free, fair and safe elections. We urge Congress to take a stand for the people by passing the For the People Act this summer.”

“From protecting the freedom to vote, to ending gerrymandering, to getting big money out of politics and strengthening ethics, the For the People Act is the bold solution that the American people are demanding,” said Karen Hobert Flynn, president of Common Cause. “At a time when partisan politicians are trying to create more barriers to voting and silence our voices, there is an urgent need to pass this essential legislation. This bill is supported by everyday Americans, including a majority of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. Nothing, including the filibuster, should block it from passage and delivering the promise of democracy to all Americans.”

“Our democracy is in grave danger,” said Christina Harvey, Managing Director of Stand Up America. “Just five months ago, a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 election. Since then, motivated by the same Big Lie, state legislators across the country have introduced over 380 bills in 48 states attacking our freedom to vote. These efforts are surgically tailored to reduce access to the ballot box, especially for Black and brown Americans. Time is running out to save our democracy. Congress must act quickly, and cast aside the arcane and outdated Jim Crow filibuster, in order to pass two vital pieces of legislation: the For The People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. Stand Up America will continue to put the full force of our 2 million member community behind fighting for their passage.”

“Our democracy is strongest when everyone’s voices are heard fairly and equally. Amid efforts across state legislatures to curtail voting rights, and as corporate interests pervade our political systems, the For the People Act is the bold and necessary solution to transform our democracy into one that reflects the voice of all Americans,” said Jana Morgan, director of the Declaration for American Democracy coalition. “Advancing fair representation in our government by installing necessary checks against corporate corruption, eliminating partisan gerrymandering, and establishing federal election standards that strengthen the freedom vote for all Americans—especially Black, Brown, Indigenous and historically underrepresented communities—is critical. That is why our coalition of over 220 organizations across various issue areas is urging the Senate and Biden administration to swiftly pass this sweeping package of reforms, which has strong, popular support from voters across all party lines, to make the promises of democracy real for us all.”

“Republican governors and state legislatures aren’t reaching across the aisle when they’re pushing elections bills though in states across the country — they’re strategically attacking the right to vote and are confident that Senator McConnell will have their back,” said Eli Zupnick, spokesman for Fix Our Senate. “Right now the Senate is hopelessly gridlocked by the filibuster, a Jim Crow relic that has thwarted progress on civil and voting rights for a century. There is only one choice: the Senate must act swiftly and decisively to eliminate the filibuster as a weapon that Sen. McConnell can use to block progress on voting rights and democracy legislation. Time is running out and, as Leader Schumer has said, ‘failure is not an option.'”

“Our democracy is on the line, and there’s no time to waste: Lawmakers in Congress must pass the For The People Act swiftly,” said Rev. Dr. Stephany Spaulding, spokesperson for Just Democracy and Founder of Truth & Conciliation. “For too long, anti-democratic actors and institutions have deliberately kept Black and Brown people out of equal participation in our democracy. It’s time to fight back against Republican attacks on voting rights at the state legislative level and build a functioning and just democracy. Lawmakers on the fence must decide if they want history to remember them as aligned with the segregationist agenda, or as champions of strengthening our democracy.”

“I have labored in the vineyard of the struggle for Voting Rights for decades,” said Barbara Arnwine, President & Founder of Transformative Justice Coalition.  “I can think of no more critical of a time to stand up for our democracy than this moment, this day, this hour, this minute! We are traveling throughout the states in which voters have been wounded by the onslaught of vicious voter suppression legislation.  We now bring directly to Congress the outcry of the newly disenfranchised voters who ask mercifully for protection by the passage of The For The People Act.“

The Deadline for Democracy campaign is in response to recent Republican state-level attacks on voting rights and the decades-long Republican campaign to undermine democracy. The For the People Act has critical provisions that will counter attacks by Republicans, including new voter protections, election security provisions, bans on partisan gerrymandering, and helps get big money out of politics. The campaign is called ‘Deadline For Democracy,’ because the Senate must pass the For the People Act by August in order for states to implement them prior to the 2022 midterm elections.

Some ways Indivisible, Declaration for American Democracy Coalition, Stand Up America, End Citizens United Action Fund, Common Cause, Fix Our Senate, Advancement Project, Transformative Justice Coalition, Just Democracy, and the other 70+ organizations will use their resources to help activists pressure the Senate to pass democracy reform before the end of summer include:

• • • Helping organize protests, light brigades, meeting with lawmakers, rallies, parades, and more creative, eye-catching displays,
    • Facilitating trainings, community planning spaces, and media support,
    • Providing grants and direct financial support, swag, and support with distributed fundraising platforms.

# # #

Indivisible also provides a detailed a DEADLINE FOR DEMOCRACY EVENT TOOLKIT.

You can Pledge to Attend a Deadline for Democracy Event Near You. Be sure to Register an Event: Deadline for Democracy.

UPDATE: In an open letter addressed to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), 480 Democratic state legislators ask Congress to pass the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.

In the letter, the lawmakers, all Democrats, say:

“Make no mistake: these unpatriotic attacks on our elections will undermine confidence that elections in America can possibly represent the will of a checked and balanced majority,” they write. “They present a deep threat to our democracy and will lead to material harm to communities that have long been under-represented.”

“The world is watching. American democracy is in the balance,” they continue. “When future generations judge whether we rose to this pivotal moment in history, we hope you will be counted alongside us in the fight to preserve this experiment in self-governance.”