By David Morgan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Even as they push towards a vote on U.S. election reform that is almost certain to fail, some congressional Democrats say they hope that defeat may provide the opportunity to scrap the filibuster https://www.reuters.com/world/us/what-is-us-senate-filibuster-why-is-everyone-talking-about-it-2021-03-10 rule that allows the minority in the Senate to block most legislation.
The Senate is poised to take a procedural vote https://www.reuters.com/world/us/democrats-voting-rights-plan-faces-long-odds-us-senate-2021-06-22 on Tuesday on a sweeping election overhaul bill which they say contains needed measures to counteract laws passed in states that make it harder to vote.
“It’s an important step today to get every senator on record about willingness to talk about protecting our democracy. And if that fails, then the Democrats are going to have to talk about what the next path forward is,” said Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren.
To pass the chamber, most legislation requires 60 votes to move forward – a steep hurdle at any time but especially in the current Senate where each party controls 50 seats. Republicans have said the bill is an overreach and that they will block the its passage.
Activists and many Democratic lawmakers say reforming or scrapping the filibuster is necessary to pass legislation to move forward on key parts of President Joe Biden’s agenda, including on voting rights.
“Certainly, there is risk in getting rid of the filibuster, but there’s risk if we let the status quo where nothing happens continue,” said Democratic Senator John Hickenlooper.
From the other chamber, Steny Hoyer, the No. 2 House Democrat and a vocal critic of the filibuster, referred to the vote in a call with reporters, saying, “We don’t expect to win it, but it will be a dramatic evidence of why the filibuster needs to be modified.”
Two moderate Democratic senators – Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin – have publicly stated they would oppose efforts to end it.
“The filibuster compels moderation and helps protect the country from wild swings between opposing policy poles,” Sinema wrote in an opinion column defending the filibuster published in The Washington Post on Tuesday.
Manchin is the only Senate Democrat who has not cosponsored the “For the People Act,” the party’s flagship voting bill. Instead, he released a memo of changes to election law that he would support, including mandating 15 days of early voting, automatic registration and making Election Day a public holiday.
Ahead of the vote, he said he would vote to proceed on debate on the bill, adding: “I remain committed to finding a bipartisan pathway forward because the future of our democracy is worth it.”
(Reporting by David Morgan and Doina Chiacu; Writing by Makini Brice; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)
