SINEMA: An Interview with Norm Ornstein, a political scientist at the American Enterprise Institute. . . | Vox

Let's get into it - ". . .The Freedom to Vote Act was put together in a compromise drafted significantly by Joe Manchin, with [Sen.] Amy Klobuchar and others participating, so that Manchin could have something that he believed was not as wide-ranging and far-reaching as the original Protect the Vote Act. But that he was confident that this could be made bipartisan, because of course, there are Republicans who believe in the rule of law and fair elections.

And he’s gotten zero. So they’re seeing that that guardrail just isn’t going to apply, unless you can change the rules. . ."

Kyrsten Sinema’s opposition to filibuster reform rests on a myth

Senate rules are fostering obstruction — not bipartisanship.

(Image credit: Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) arrives to a caucus meeting with Senate Democrats on December 17, 2021 in Washington, DC.

 

By Li Zhouli@vox.com Jan 13, 2022, 5:30pm EST

Vox |

"In a speech on Thursday, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) reiterated her commitment to preserving the filibuster by citing a familiar reason: bipartisanship.

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BLOGGER INSERT from Blog for Arizona

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema Chooses To Be The Appeaser Of The Enemies Of Democracy To Be Condemned By History For The Ages (Updated)

AZ BlueMeanie

Blog for Arizona |

By |January 13th, 2022|AZ Politics

The House passed voting rights legislation on Thursday in a way that is intended to set up a battle in the Senate over that issue as well as the filibuster.

The measure passed in a 220-203 party-line vote.

Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) has vowed to put the measure to a vote in the coming days before the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in a bid to highlight state laws approved by GOP-dominated state governments that Democrats say will make it more difficult for their supporters — including minority voters — to vote.

“Nothing less is at stake than our democracy,” said Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

The manner in which the legislation was approved allows Schumer to bring it straight to the floor. But Democrats would need 60 votes — including 10 GOP votes — to get it to President Biden’s desk given the filibuster.

Two Democratic senators — Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona — oppose making changes to the filibuster that would allow the voting rights measure to sidestep the procedural hurdle and be approved on a majority vote.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) doubled down on her support for the 60-vote legislative filibuster Thursday, roughly an hour before President Biden meets with Democrats to push for changing the Senate rule in order to pass voting rights legislation.

“I will not support separate actions that worsen the underlying disease of division infecting our country,” Sinema said during a Senate floor speech.

She added that she has had “long-standing support” for the legislative filibuster, which requires 60 votes for most legislation to advance in the Senate.

“It is the view I continue to hold. It is the belief I have shared many times in public settings and in private settings,” Sinema said. “Eliminating the 60-vote threshold will simply guarantee that we lose a critical tool that we need to safeguard our democracy.”

As Sinema was speaking, several GOP senators were on the floor listening to her speech: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and Sens. John Thune (S.D.), Mitt Romney (Utah), Susan Collins (Maine), Ben Sasse (Neb.), Bill Hagerty (Tenn.), Tom Cotton (Ark.), Ted Cruz (Texas) and Thom Tillis (N.C.).

Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin (Ill.), who spoke before Sinema, and Jeff Merkley (Ore.) were at their desks for Sinema’s speech.

This Vichy Democrat collaborator appeasing the enemies of democracy made the bullshit assertion that she supports the voting rights bills, but not more than she supports the Jim Crow relic Senate filibuster rule, or asking permission from the enemies of democracy who tried to overthrow American democracy on January 6, 2021. She does not support voting rights if she does not support doing what everyone knows is necessary to pass voting rights. Stop treating your constituents as if they are as ignorant and gullible as you are, Senator. They see right through your charade.

Sinema reiterated on Thursday that she supports the two voting rights bills and raised a red flag over the state-level changes to voting rules. . ."

 

As Norm Ornstein, a political scientist at the American Enterprise Institute, has emphasized, however, the belief that the filibuster fuels bipartisanship is one of many myths about the rule. The filibuster requires most bills to get 60 votes in order to proceed in the Senate, but it’s often used as a tool to obstruct legislation, not foster it.

“Certainly there was a time when we had well-established norms in the Senate that fostered problem-solving and bipartisanship,” Ornstein told Vox. “That time is long gone.”

Since Democrats took control of Congress following the 2020 elections, Republican filibusters have killed many of their bills. Democrats are now attempting, again, to pass major voting rights bills (the Freedom to Vote and John Lewis Voting Rights acts), and they are, again, expected to be filibustered by the GOP.

Most Democrats, including President Joe Biden, have had enough. The party’s now pushing for filibuster reform — and a vote on altering the rule is imminent. But moderate Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Sinema have resisted calls to make changes. Thursday, Sinema made it clear she wants the filibuster to stay the way it is.

“I will not support separate actions that worsen the underlying disease of division infecting our country,” Sinema said in remarks emphasizing her support for the filibuster. Sinema’s speech, which effectively dooms Democrats’ chances at a rules change since they need all 50 members on board, rests on the idea that keeping the vote threshold would encourage more compromise and less division.

In a conversation this week, Ornstein spoke with Vox about why this idea is mistaken, why the Senate needs a rules change, and why many arguments against it deserve more scrutiny.

This transcript has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Li Zhou

"You’ve pushed for filibuster reform for a long time, but such calls have intensified in recent months as states have passed new laws restricting voting rights. What is different to you about the political moment we’re in right now?

Norm Ornstein

First, we’re finally seeing, I think, a level of frustration, over the misuse of the filibuster, not as an infrequently applied tool by a minority on an issue about which they feel very, very strongly, but as a cynical weapon of mass obstruction. And that started with increased vengeance in the Obama years. But it’s continued. And it means if you don’t have more than 60 of your own party members, you’re just dramatically limited in what you can do in policy terms. And it’s basically because you have a minority party that’s not looking to solve problems, but to figure out how to block anything of significance in your own agenda, and make sure problems fester so that they have more traction to gain political advantage.

That’s different. It’s been different, really, for the last almost 15 years. And it’s reached a point of deep frustration. . .

[...] If you’re going to have to go to the floor and defend the indefensible, explain why you’re with the NRA gun manufacturers and not 90 percent of Americans, at some point you’re probably going to say, why don’t we have a compromise on this? So, part of the argument to Sinema and Manchin is if you want incentives to compromise, there are zero now. But you can have an incentive to compromise if they’re going to have to go through pain and defend things that don’t have majority support even within their own ranks."

TAKE THE TIME TO READ BETWEEN -THE-LINES >> https://www.vox.com/2022/1/13/22876563/kyrsten-sinema-filibuster-bipartisanship