Two senators who support abortion rights have blasted Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris for calling for an end to the filibuster to enact nearly unlimited abortion protections into law.
Harris It is called During an appearance on Wisconsin Public Radio on Tuesday, he called for an end to the Senate legislative filibuster to enact abortion rights and repeal the state's pro-life laws, a move that would have major legislative and societal implications that go far beyond abortion.
Sen. Joe Manchin (I-WV) has left the party to become an independent but remains in the Democratic caucus and has said he will no longer endorse Harris for president. said CNN.
“Shame on her,” Manchin said Tuesday. “She knows the filibuster is the Holy Grail of democracy. It's the only thing that keeps us talking and working together. If she does away with it, the House will be like it's on steroids.”
“That's not going to happen,” he said of Manchin endorsing Harris. “I think that would fundamentally destroy our country. To me, our country is more important than any individual or any individual's ideas. I think that's the most frightening thing.”
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who like Manchin is now an independent but still caucuses with the Democratic Party, blasted Harris for her “deeply shortsighted” position.
“To state the very clearest thing, eliminating the filibuster to codify Roe v. Wade would allow a future Congress to ban all abortions nationwide,” Sinema said. Posts X Tuesday. “That's a really terrible, short-sighted idea.”
Manchin and Sinema, who are not seeking reelection, continue to support the filibuster, which has been significantly weakened over the past decade as the Senate has become more majoritarian and less subject to the compromise and legislative procedures that have made it the epicenter of congressional power for generations.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) first weakened the filibuster in 2013, using the so-called “nuclear option” — a move to break with the Senate's rules — to lower the confirmation threshold for President Barack Obama's non-Supreme Court nominees from three-fifths to a simple majority (60 to 51 if the Senate is full). After Republicans took control of the Senate, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) also lowered the confirmation threshold for Supreme Court nominees.
Judicial nominees, once confirmed, are effectively guaranteed life tenure. But abolishing the legislative filibuster is of an entirely different nature.
Harris' decision to begin eliminating the filibuster in Congress could set in motion a cycle of important federal bills being passed and repealed from one chamber to the next depending on who holds the majority in Congress. This change would remove the incentive for Congress to pass positive, meaningful legislation, and instead focus on passing important bills that they know will likely be repealed in the short term.
As a former senator, Harris is no doubt aware of its serious implications. Many institutionalist Senate Democrats — who often despise the House's petty partisanship and emphasis on message over policy — have opposed or skirted the issue, despite strong calls from left-wing activists to abolish the filibuster.
But as Harris continues to struggle to rally support against Donald Trump, she has, in Manchin's words, thrown a Hail Mary.
“I think we should abolish the filibuster. egg“It's about restoring in law the protection of reproductive freedom and the ability of every person, every woman, to make decisions about their own body without being dictated to by the government,” Harris said Tuesday.
The Supreme Court Roe v. Wade Harris has made the killing of unborn babies through abortion a central focus of her campaign, repeatedly refusing to discuss the abortion restrictions she supports and falsely claiming that abortions are not available later in pregnancy.
Bradley Jay is Capitol Hill correspondent for Breitbart News. Follow him on X/Twitter. translation:.
