Sen. Krysten Sinema Defends Filibuster Of Democrats Voting Rights Bill

Sen. Krysten Sinema (D-Ariz.) is defending the 60-vote legislative filibuster of the For the People Act.

Sinema wrote in a Washington Post op-ed that nixing the filibuster would weaken “democracy’s guardrails” and the U.S. would “lose much more than we gain.”

“It’s no secret that I oppose eliminating the Senate’s 60-vote threshold,” Sinema wrote. “My support for retaining the 60-vote threshold is not based on the importance of any particular policy. It is based on what is best for our democracy. The filibuster compels moderation and helps protect the country from wild swings between opposing policy poles.”

The For the People Act is a bill to overhaul federal elections.

Sinema, though initially supportive of the bill, argued that Democrats should replace it with “a nationwide voter-ID law or restrictions on voting by mail in federal elections.”

“It is time for the Senate to debate the legislative filibuster, so senators and our constituents can hear and fully consider the concerns and consequences,” she said. “Hopefully, senators can then focus on crafting policies through open legislative processes and amendments, finding compromises that earn broad support.”

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is also opposed to getting rid of the filibuster, making the path toward abolishing it in this Congress highly unlikely.

Article by Elizabeth Letsou