Arizona Democratic senator Kyrsten Sinema delivered a speech on the Senate floor Thursday afternoon in defense of the 60-vote threshold in the Senate necessary to pass most legislation:
SINEMA: “Eliminating the 60-vote threshold…will not guarantee that we prevent demagogues from winning office. …Eliminating the 60-vote threshold will simply guarantee that we lose a critical tool that we need to safeguard our democracy from threats in the years to come." pic.twitter.com/MWIReLnERN
— JM Rieger (@RiegerReport) January 13, 2022
Sinema Delivers Senate Floor Remarks on Voting Rights, America's Divisions, and the U.S. Senate https://t.co/72zAFWDPjO
— Kyrsten Sinema (@SenatorSinema) January 13, 2022
While Sinema spoke in favor of Democratic bills that would federalize elections, she said of efforts to eliminate the filibuster: “I will not support separate actions that worsen the underlying disease of division infecting our country.”
Sinema made the case that the filibuster keeps the country from experiencing “wild reversals” in policy and “ensures that millions of Americans represented by the minority party have a voice in this process.”
On Tuesday, West Virginia Democratic senator Joe Manchin reiterated his view that any change to Senate rules needs the support of two-thirds of senators. Manchin is adamantly opposed to eliminating the 60-vote threshold.