Manchin and Sinema Double Down on Preserving Filibuster after Dobbs Leak
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Senators Joe Manchin (D., WV.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D., AZ.) will not vote to abolish the legislative filibuster, both lawmakers said on Tuesday. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has pledged to bring legislation codifying Roe v. Wade to the floor of the upper chamber of Congress in the wake of the leak of a draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, but will be unable to do so if Manchin and Sinema remain steadfast in opposing any change to the filibuster.
The two moderates are facing renewed pressure from their Democratic colleagues to kill the 60-vote hurdle necessary to advance legislation following the leak of the draft opinion, which, if adopted, would uphold Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban and overturn Roe. Chief Justice John Roberts confirmed the authenticity of the opinion on Tuesday. “Although the document described in yesterday’s reports is authentic, it does not represent a decision by the Court, or the final position of any member on the issues in the case,” he wrote in a statement.
“The filibuster is a protection of democracy,” Manchin told reporters on Tuesday.
“Protections in the Senate safeguarding against the erosion of women’s access to health care have been used half-a-dozen times in the past ten years, and are more important now than ever,” said Sinema in a statement.
“A woman’s health care choices should be between her, her family, and her doctor. Overturning Roe v. Wade endangers the health and wellbeing of women in Arizona and across America,” she added. “Throughout my time in Congress, I’ve always supported women’s access to health care, I’m a cosponsor of the Women’s Health Protection Act, and I’ll continue working with anyone to protect women’s ability to make decisions about their futures.”
In the wake of the leak, first reported by Politico, multiple progressive Democrats, such as Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., NY.) and Senator Bernie Sanders (D., VT.), have urged colleagues to expedite legislation codifying Roe into federal law.
In February, Democrats’ first attempt to enshrine Roe with the Women’s Health Protection Act, which Sinema endorsed, failed when the Senate was unable to invoke cloture and proceed with a vote on the legislation itself.
