Photographer: Alex Brandon / AP
Photographer: Alex Brandon / AP
Democratic Senator Joe Manchin said that any voting rights legislation must be bipartisan to be accepted as legitimate by US voters, complicating the way for the passage of a bill that is the main objective of Democratic leaders, but that Republicans oppose.
At issue is S. 1, the Senate counterpart to a House-approved bill that majority leader Chuck Schumer said was crucial to curb efforts by Republican-led states to set new limits on voter access.
While some Democrats say the Senate bill is so essential to American democracy that they are willing to force it into a party vote, Manchin said that any revision of electoral laws should be limited to what at least some Republicans also support.
“We shouldn’t try to do anything to create more distrust and division,” Manchin told reporters on Wednesday. “So I think there are things good enough that we can all be together. This is what we must work on. “
The West Virginia Democrat’s independent streak is posing challenges for Schumer in a 50-50 Senate division between the parties as he tries to advance President Joe Biden’s agenda. Manchin also resisted pressure to end the obstruction, which requires 60 votes to act on most legislation.
Schumer is looking voting rights legislation as a test case for how Republicans will use obstruction to block Democratic priorities. Senator Dick Durbin, Schumer’s deputy chief, challenged Republicans who defend the obstruction to prove that it can work by voting with Democrats on weapons and infrastructure control projects popular with voters.
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Manchin’s demand for bipartisanship came on the same day that Schumer and Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell faced off against the S. 1 Rules Committee, which would make it significantly easier to vote, would limit the gerrymandering of parliamentary districts , would require third-party policy to reveal secret donors and reform the Federal Electoral Commission, among other changes.
The Democratic-led House approved its version of the bill on March 3, by 220-210 votes.
Schumer said the voting laws proposed by Republicans in Georgia, Pennsylvania and other states “look like Jim Crow raising his head again” He said the Senate’s voting rights bill may contain what he described as threats to democracy .
Speaking later in the Senate floor, Schumer hinted at his willingness to challenge Republicans in obstructing this measure.
“We will not allow this to continue,” he said of state laws that restrict voting rights. “We are not going to let this stay. S. 1 will pass this body. “
McConnell told the Rules Committee that the bill “is a solution in search of a problem” because it comes after an election with record voter turnout. He said Democrats are seeking to “forcibly rewrite” state and local laws with new approaches that will give Democratic candidates an advantage.
“This legislation is not ready for prime time,” said the Kentucky Republican. “It is an invitation to chaos.”