Democrats supposedly have control of the Senate, but two right-leaning Democrats, Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin refused to vote with their party in what’s only the latest of departures for them. This issue, however, will bring far-reaching effects because it affects the very foundation of our country. That would be Manchin and Sinema’s effective shutting down of voting rights legislation — The Freedom to Vote Act and John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which would have helped improve access to voting by marginalized communities that are affected by gerrymandering and the like.
After this move, the Arizona Democratic Party appears to have had enough and issued a statement about Sinema. The timing says a lot here, given that this didn’t really happen when Sinema raved about Mitch McConnell (while denying that she’d go Republican) or when she gave a literal thumbs-down on a minimum wage vote. Here’s part of the Arizona Democratic Party’s response (from Chair Raquel Terán), via Raw Story:
“This should not be a partisan issue — the duty to protect our most fundamental right to vote is one that we all share. Despite last night’s outcome, our fight to protect the rights of Arizonans by passing the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act continues.
“We were counting on Senator Sinema to fight for Arizona, find a path forward, and protect our democracy, but on this issue she has fallen short… Right now, Arizona is ground-zero for the modern-day fight for voting rights, and we don’t have any time to waste.”
“She has fallen short” seems like a pretty clear-cut way to say that the ADP has had enough of Sinema’s antics. As well, her largest donor has denounced Sinema, which does not bode well for her reelection, at least as a Democrat.
(Via Raw Story)