Sanders calls out Manchin, Sinema ahead of filibuster showdown
By Jordain Carney - 01/17/22 04:10 PM EST
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Monday name-checked Democratic Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.) and Joe Manchin (W.Va.) as a months-long push to change the legislative filibuster and pass voting rights legislation is poised to come to a head this week.
Sanders, in a tweet, asked whether all 50 Democrats will support changing the filibuster, which requires 60 votes for most legislation to advance in the Senate, noting that it is the one vote that really matters. To change the rules without GOP support, Democrats will need total unity from their caucus.
"As the voting rights bill finally comes to the floor of the Senate, there is only one vote which will really matter. Will 50 Democrats vote to override the filibuster, protect American democracy and pass the bill, or will Manchin and Sinema vote with the GOP and let the bill die?" Sanders said in the tweet.
Sanders's tweet comes as the Senate is expected to formally start debate on voting legislation on Tuesday, with Democrats taking up legislation that combines the Freedom to Vote Act, which would overhaul federal elections and campaign finance laws, with the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which would strengthen the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
Though Democrats are using a procedural loophole to sidestep the 60 votes typically needed to start debate on a bill, they'll still need GOP help to end debate. That vote, which would require 10 GOP senators to vote with Democrats to advance the legislation, is expected on Wednesday, according to a scheduling update from Senate Democrats.
Republicans, however, are expected to use the filibuster to block the voting rights bill from advancing. Once that happens, Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) has vowed that he will force a vote on changing the Senate's rules.
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https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/590074-sanders-calls-out-manchin-sinema-ahead-of-filibuster-showdown
