Dark Money, Voting Rights Protections, Manchin and Sinema
Sinema and Manchin want to protect democracy after they get permission from the people who are attacking democracy.
Last week, President Joe Biden took off his kid gloves with Sens. Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema.
Biden stated firmly, “I hear all the folks on TV saying, ‘Why didn’t Biden get this done?’ Well, because Biden only has a majority of, effectively, four votes in the House and a tie in the Senate with two members of the Senate who vote more with my Republican friends.”
This is a clear signal to journalists, pundits, and Democrats that Biden is done trying to gently coax Sinema and Manchin into line.
Here’s where Sinema and Manchin stand:
Sinema backs For the People Act, but not abolishing the filibuster to pass it.
Manchin says he believes the legislation is overly broad to begin with but provides no specifics.
What is in the For the People Act bill?
The bill mandates online, automatic, and same-day voter registration. It requires at least two weeks of in-person early voting, and it allows people to vote by mail without needing an excuse.
So why is Manchin opposed to the bill?
Recall in April of 2014, Manchin appeared on Fox News defending billionaires and donors to campaigns, “I mean, I don’t agree with their politics or philosophically, but you know they’re Americans, they’re doing — paying their taxes. They are not breaking the law. They’re providing jobs.”
Are every reason Manchin gives for refusing to pass the For the People’s Act bought and paid for by dark money?
The Koch-backed effort to block the largest election-reform bill in fifty years is succeeding. On a leaked call, leaders of dark-money groups along with a Mitch McConnell aid, expressed frustration over how popular the voting rights legislation is with most Americans, including Republicans.
According to the New Yorker, the participants on the call “conceded that the bill, which would stem the flow of dark money from such political donors as the billionaire oil magnate Charles Koch, was so popular that it wasn’t worth trying to mount a public-advocacy campaign to shift opinion.”
The US Chamber of Commerce joined Koch efforts to craft state laws to favor corporations. The Chamber receives substantial funding from the Koch Network.
Are they passing this money to Sinema and Manchin?
If they are, both Manchin and Sinema should be removed from serving on committees and replaced by other Democrats pending a full investigation.
Senators are supposed to be representing their constituents, not dark money.
On Monday, @MaddowBlog Tweeted, “New polling shows that West Virginia voters very much support the For The People Act for voting rights, making it all the more odd that their senator, @Sen_JoeManchin is refusing to vote for it.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has largely avoided bringing bills to the floor that would force a vote on abolishing the filibuster. He is being unfairly blamed for things that are beyond his control.
Meanwhile, all across America Republicans are busy passing bills that not only make voting harder but will enable the GOP to overturn election results with ridiculous justifications.
Republican are proving they will go to any lengths to recapture power.
Fun Fact: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stated last month that if Donald Trump ran for president, he would support him.
McConnell’s statement tells us that no leader inside the Republican Party has any regret about the January 6 attack on our Capitol. We can expect that many sedition caucus Republicans will try to overthrow our government again the first chance they get.
Sedition Caucus Republicans and the dark money that funds them appear to be openly declaring war on our free and fair elections. They have moved to suppress voting in states like Georgia, Arizona, Iowa, Florida, and Texas.
Republicans appear to be positioning themselves so they can overturn the will of American voters. The Senate can end most of this corruption by passing the voting rights protections that would restore full voting rights and prevent corruption in federal elections.
Many are asking if Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Mitt Romney would join Democrats to protect voting rights. Murkowski is up for re-election in 2022 and needs moderate voters to win.
Meanwhile, the co-founders of No Excuses PAC, Saikat Chakrabarti, Corbin Trent and Zack Exley, are searching for Democratic candidates to challenge Manchin and Sinema who are up for re-election in 2024.
Moreover, the Vote Vets Action Fund funded the two ads aimed at pressuring Manchin and Sinema to back the For the People Act.
Sinema and Manchin appear to want to protect democracy after they get permission from the people who are attacking democracy.
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