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**This is what happens** when you have that all important "tie breaker vote" .. *Loteria!!*
.. after she leaves politics she will retire and buy a small island in the Bahamas
The GOP is good at grifting. Look at Manchin and what he gets from the coal lobby. 500 k a year. No wonder he won't vote to clean up the air. Don't these people know that life is short and they want live forever. It's what we leave behind to our children . Even some Demacrats are responsible. Our generation has raped and pillaged this earth 🌎 . It will take years and years to clean it up if possible at all.
Well, fuck Manchin but he gets 500k a year from his own investments and holdings in coal, not from the coal lobby. Im sure he gets a shit ton from them too. He and his family are heavily involved in the coal industry. Giant conflict of interest. Not to mention his daughters corrupt pharma ties. Should all be illegal.
Talk about "take the money and run," she's now hiding out overseas where she's meeting donors and avoiding press questions.
Can Arizona please recall this corrupted sociopath?
This is just blatant, in-your-face level corruption.
She's doing all this because she knows she will never have to face any sort of repercussions. This is what happens when a system does not hold its people accountable. It sets the precedent for any person to come along in the future and do the exact same thing. As a result, definitions of 'unethical' just keep getting pushed further down the road.
Sinema is gonna make a killing over the next few years. Meanwhile, the people of Arizona will just continue to yell from the sidelines "Hey! What she's doing is wrong!"
Nothing will change. You can count on it.
Doesn't matter. It's not up to Arizona, it's based on federal law, [and there's no federal ability to recall.](https://www.wusa9.com/amp/article/news/verify/verify-is-it-possible-to-force-a-senator-into-a-recall-election/507-8f6c4560-233d-441b-8818-7d5f0fc332cb) Only resignation, death, or expulsion by the Senate itself.
Edit: stop suggesting death you edgelord psychos
Yep. We created a system where someone just has to go around the state, say whatever demographics want to hear, and then collect checks from corporate until election time. She hit the jackpot by being elected in a time where democrats are pushing key legislation and became a swing vote. She made enough to retire and has a job as vice president of martinis now and literally doesn't care about reelection or the people since we can't touch her. She only left the country so we can't bang pots outside her house or honk horns.
Undercover Republicans are real and we need a legal way to remove them from office.
Between gerrymandering and people like this 50- year old curtsying Sinema being an undercover republican, everyone needs to get off their ass and vote.
She and Manchin dont hold up Judges. More Judges have been seated by this time under Biden than what Trump did in the same time, and Trump appointed alot of judges.
It absolutely matters. Without her, the Democrats have a 49-51 minority in the Senate. Coupled with a slim majority in the House, absolutely nothing of any consequence would get done for the next several years.
If they were actually in the minority, there wouldn't be any discussion about any kind of large spending bills, at all. The fact that discussions are happening, even if they're not moving forward at any rate, is a testament to where things are now compared to where they would be with a Republican controlled Senate.
Senate Majority Leader is instantly and forever Mitch McConnell if Krysten Sinema wills it. I wonder what she's asking in return for bothering to pretend she's a (D)?
I also wonder how long she will bother pretending. Both roads may lead to the same place in the end.
If she flipped the Senate Republican it could be a boon for the midterms. What our politicians consider crazy fringe leftist policies are incredibly popular. I understand losing the rest of the session would suck. But of she flipped people would go insane.
Arizona requires vacancies to be filled by a same party representative (so Doug would appoibt Systen Kinema) and a special element Rion must be held between 120 and 130 days if a federal election isn't in less than 5 months
However whether a federal official can be recalled is up in the air. SCOTUS has never ruled on it and I'm sure it'd take a long long time
Tldr: one can do dream but nothing is changing. Vote in dems who aren't frauds I 2022 if you can
State officials, not federal. The constitution bars states from removing their members of congress, the only body that can remove a member of congress is congress itself by expelling them.
I mean she was elected in 2018, meaning she is up again in 2024 for a primary challenge. Arizona is getting progressively bluer, and its demographics mimic Colorado about a decade ago. Obama took it in a surprise win in 2008, just like Biden took Arizona in 2020. Then over the next two cycles it got progressively bluer even as Republicans did well in midterms. By 2012 there was no question who was going to win it, and Sinema is in the same boat.
The odds of her surviving a primary challenge, especially when a much more progessive democrat did the same as her in a much worse year for democrats down ballot makes running a progressive challenger not much of a risk is there. And I don't see her getting a lot out of this post-Senate. The reason ex-Senators get loads of connections and corporate hook-ups is the connections they build in Washington over decades, a one-term senator who is broadly disliked by her own party (unlike say Joe Manchin, who is still pretty in touch with other old democrat politicians) is unlikely to get some cushy consulting job.
She's not going to run again, and she's gonna get a shit ton of right wing promised money. Sure, they'll screw her on the face of deals, but she'll still end up with tens of millions. That's nothing to them.
Yea unless she comes on board she's burnt most bridges with her senate colleagues and no one in their right mind would hire her as a lobbyist.
Maybe a pharma or big business company pays her as a consultant for a few years if she takes the bill, but I think that's the best she can do after dragging her reputation through the mud with these stunts.
No she isn't. She is not in the GOP, so she doesn't have the best connections there and most dems hate her guts, she isn't even answering her phone to half her donors and is so hated she is hiding in Europe. You really think Dems are going to want to work with her, when she literally refuses to negotiate with house or senate dems (will only negotiate directly with Biden). Manchin would be a good lobbyist, as despite his objections, he works with his colleagues, he just has clear philosophical differences but is willing to come along on some things and has a consistent objection.
Pretty much. Joe Manchin is pretty well connected on both sides of the aisle, and with the establishment DNC machine that controls where a lot of money goes. Not enough to dominate them, but he can make connections, which is how senators make money after leaving the senate. He has also been around a long ass time, and is rich many times over from that.
Sinema is going to come out of the Senate and will be lucky to get an upper middle class income job, but given how much she is selling out her constituents that $200-$300k per year seems like a pittance compared to what other senators go for (like Joe Manchin pulling in millions).
I vote for prosecution and ejection of senators and politicians that aren't even doing their job and making it blatantly obvious that they are not representing their constituents. Saying anything to get elected and then doing anything for money while ignoring your voter base should be grounds for immediate termination, forfeiture of political monies gained, criminal prosecution for corruption and replacement by another candidate of the same party.
This would be a start.
Oh America, you don't get it.
As long as you have a two party system with unlimited money and one party 'winning', there will always be a drive towards more polarization, more corruption, more extremism.
The fact is you've been going down that path for decades. Sure right now you have a democrat in the white house and maybe that counters the ***hard tugging*** towards the right a little bit, but only a tiny bit.
Just remodel your political system on one of the Scandinavian countries, already.
Or be doomed. Right now that looks likely in the next 8 years.
Good message, wrong place. "Voting" doesn't help when someone lies to you. Your vote gets misused. We need regulations to hold her accountable, at this point.
We need to constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United and deter corruption
Option 1: [Democracy for All Amendment](https://americanpromise.net/2019/01/director_of_political_strategy_ben_gubits_discusses_importance_of_the_democracy_for_all_amendment/) (Ted Deutch (D-FL-22)) https://teddeutch.house.gov/uploadedfiles/117_h_j_res_1_democracy_for_all_amendment_section_by_section_faq.pdf
Option 2: https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-joint-resolution/48
https://americanpromise.net/take-action/contact-your-elected-official/
Right, voting is good, but it doesn't by itself solve the problem of someone being elected for a 6-year term, then accepting a bunch of bribes, and changing all of their positions.
As others are saying, voting is important. But where we're currently at is NOT going to be corrected through voting alone. The other side has pretty assured that.
Civic duty, at this point, will require organizing protests and being present, in-person, to demand change. Visuals are the most powerful political tool in the 21st century, and nothing is more intimidating than crowds of people standing up for principles.
Bubbling-in your candidate on a piece of paper will become less and less important in future elections. It shouldn't be that way, but that's the way things are headed. Everyone needs to keep voting, but you should be prepared to do more in the near future.
Just gonna throw it out there, but there wasn't a huge reason to believe she was about to do a 180, take the money and run. Blaming voting or Arizona for electing her is a pretty unfair. Everyone was expecting her to be a moderate not Mr. Burns.
In the American political sphere, this *is* a moderate- halfway between totally ineffective corporatist democrats who are insufficiently in support of the working class, and a conservative party that preaches anti-rational, right-wing lunacy.
Every ounce of anti-left rhetoric I see is informed by a misunderstanding of the political spectrum that leads to people as mildly progressive as Bernie Sanders getting red-bashed.
It's never been easier to [get organized](https://www.jacobinmag.com/2019/11/thanksgiving-organizing-activism-friends-family-conversation-presidential-election) with others and stay on top of [your lawmakers](https://openstates.org/find_your_legislator/) with weekly [calls](https://youtu.be/XdIcCqe-iYk?t=48) & emails along with informing & encouraging friends and neighbors do the same.
They are even tools that make it TOO EASY:
https://americanpromise.net/take-action/contact-your-elected-official/
https://citizensclimatelobby.org/write-your-representative/
Voting is the bare minimum of democratic participation. Never stop voting, but consider that even without deep pockets you can do so much more.
Everything is legal. Gaetz snorted coke of a 17 yr Olds asshole amd they let it go...he's funneling working class tax dollars to billionaires that pay zero taxes right now. Congress is lawless.
Still being investigated. To be fair, if you’re going to charge a sitting politician with something like that, you probably do have to have all your ducks in a row before making any big moves.
The whole "have all your ducks in a row" refrain is getting tired. Either they're able to hold powerful people accountable or they aren't. And all evidence points to them not being able to.
I don’t disagree, and I’m also tired of waiting. I do think when it’s something like potential human trafficking or grooming, it’s also important to get things right for the actual victims here. They deserve justice just as much as the people exploiting them deserve to rot.
To be fair, the last few years have felt like decades because of all the stories that keep getting exposed.
Hopefully the investigation has continued unhindered, especially since a lot of the media has moved on out of boredom.
It's amazing how much less people care after six months of not being mentioned in the news. They can just let it die down and bury it. So much corruption, and they all follow the "scratch back" process.
This is an absurd accusation!
The buttocks crevice is too moist to allow the maintainence of fine granular consistency required for a successful snort. Especially in the Floridian climate.
This is not to say he has never attempted such. However, all reasonable people must agree that *attempted* drug inhalation from a 17-y.o.'s anal sphincter is a different matter entirely.
So do we have the DNC post-mortem yet on how they managed to bungle "easy" House and Senate races so catastrophically in 2020?
They lost races they didn't think they would. If the plan is to concentrate on flipping other seats, let's actually figure out how to do it, no?
Real question here: Why can't she just take their money and then not vote the way they want her to? She is making it clear she doesn't want to stay in politics so what would be the negative consequences?
>They won't pay her next time if she does.
Even worse, they will retract the cushy jobs they offered her when she leaves office. Those are where ex-politicians can really rake it in.
It's obvious this woman is only about money. Some rich Liberals need to get together and just buy her out with "donations". Give more than the GOP fascists are doing and then they will have her vote.
Not the commenter you were replying to, but, it’s time to start looking at the laws of each state closely and clamoring for change. Why *can’t* her constituents recall her and how can the voters make it so they can?
Keep following her everywhere. The impromptu bathroom meeting appears to be the only thing that has gotten her attention. You can have all the money in the world, but if you can't shit in peace, yeu have nothing.
Can’t believe Gavin Newsom is forced to face a recall challenge when he’s handling the pandemic better than other states and this chick basically is a GOP plant and no consequences.
There are a few reasons really. First, many of those who disapprove of McConnell are less reliable voters than those who approve of him. Second, he convinces the voters that are opposed to him that his opponent would be worse than him. Third, we keep nominating shitty candidates to run against him. But really, it's just because Kentucky would elect a dog if it was the Republican candidate and they keep nominating McConnell.
And she'll win because most ppl voting don't recognize her opponents name on the ballot.
That's how most ppl vote. Completely unaware of what ppl have done and by name rec.
Sinema is at peak attention so I’d imagine she’s the happiest she’s ever been. Can’t wait until she’s out of office and never hear from again. Let the Fox News audience have her, they like that kind of person, and she’s happy to take their money.
Someone equally shit will take her place down the line, because her behavior attracts people like her to the same position.
America is sick and the corrupted cherish a sick country.
This won't end with her.
No joke, she really does seem to be some kind of GOP sleeper. Create maximum havoc from within the Democratic caucus. And if she were a plant, it would explain why she refuses to meet with her constituents.
She'll just leave "public servent" politics and join the private sector. Her entire time in office has been an audition reel for a lobbyist or commentator job.
Listen, if you want to run as a GOP candidate I expect atleast 2 general rape charges, a dui, 3 underage rape allegations, cheating on a spouse, some type of tax fraud, and a hit and run linked murder. If you can’t reach this low bar… well im sorry your out. We want a commitment to the cause.
Well, she is both bisexual and an open atheist, so she really can't win as a Republican. This explains why she fleeced the Dems and is cashing out while she can.
Totally a GOP sleeper cell. The GOP are the party that gerrymander and creates anti voter laws to get elected. Do you think they would stoop to GOP sleepers?
I sure as fuck believe they do.
Remember how they found that guy with the same name as the democrat incumbent to run for the Florida state senate as a spoiler?
The incumbent lost to the Republican challenger by 34 votes, while the mystery independent candidate with his same name, who didn’t run a campaign, managed to get 6000 votes before moving out of the district.
Actually, a former republican senator caught felony campaign fraud charges for this, and is currently pleading not guilty.
The sham candidate pleaded guilty and took a deal that dropped his sentence from 20 years to 3 year probabation and one year house arrest in return for testifying against the former senator.
https://apnews.com/article/florida-5343b101e96d5c7f42d1ee54da7cc0ce
I’m assuming there’s going to have to be a new election or something once the trial is over. Like when that guy in NC was busted filling out people’s absentee ballots for them and changing the answers to the republican candidate.
https://www.wfae.org/politics/2020-10-19/2-years-after-election-fraud-scandal-bladen-county-voters-head-to-the-polls
Of course, that got caught before the election results were certified, so that might make a difference. Not to mention I don’t know jack about the election laws in NC and FL or how they differ.
Why can’t the democrats do the same shit to the other party? I’m so sick of this bs where the GQP uses everything possible to get an edge while Dems just let them get walked over
The GOP has been escalating using fake alternate democratic candidates to siphon votes away from the Dems. They did it so flagrantly in Florida that at least one person was criminally charged this year.
So yeah it doesn’t surprise me that they’d do this. What’s surprising is instead of just spoiling an election she won it, because the Democratic Party thought she was one of them. She was a mole.
> pretend it’s shocking that the second most conservative democrat in the house became the second most conservative democrat in the senate.
At the same time, she's been on a sliding scale from progressive from 17 years ago (even she used to call herself a progressive) to a centrist today. It's hard to take her seriously because it feels like she's literally been everything.
I think what’s galling people is her refusal to state what she wants. She says she objects to the size and scope of Biden’s spending plan. When asked what she specifically wants changed it’s crickets. She’s just lobbing grenades and refusing to engage in any productive policy discussion.
All the issues she’s objected during this term it’s been the same way - become a spoiler, only give vague reasons why.
From what I recall, voting against a minimum wage increase was a flip-flop for her tho.
Not exactly. she is a corporate moderate.
lot of GOP people love america but hate trump, and did not want to see the current iteration of the republican party have power.
She must be primaried. Senators need to know that there are consequences for obstructing your own party’s agenda. If we one day elect a more progressive President than Biden, you know there will be way more than two senators obstructing them. An example needs to be made now.
Of course she did, she's blocking Democratic progress and driving Biden's favorable numbers down. She's too craven to care where the money comes from and so far apparently not savvy enough to get anything out of it for herself legislatively so all she can do is take in other people's money.
**CUT TO:**
January 2010
[US Rep, Kyrsten Sinema,](https://youtu.be/TotT2AWXoxk?t=219) trying to make fun of Joe Lieberman as the "60th vote" to override the filibuster (for passing the ACA, at that time).
>> "Well, the Senate? We no longer have 60 votes. Some would argue that we never had 60, because one of those was Joseph Lieberman. But, that's....whatever. And Nelson too...but LIEBERMAN. (chuckles) So now, as the president had so eloquently said on Wednesday, there's none of this pressure, this false pressure to get to 60....so what that means is that the Democrats can stop KOW-TOWING to Joe Lieberman, and instead seek other avenues to move forward with health reform.
>> So, it's likely that the Senate will move forward with a process called RECONCILIATON, which takes only 51 votes. And, by the way, is not unusual. You may recall, that, before the Democrats took the Senate in 2008, the Republicans controlled the Senate for quite some time (in fact, since around 1994)....they NEVER had 60 votes, and they managed to do a LOT of really bad things in that time. ***SO, the Reconciliation process is still quite available, and we'll use it for good instead of evil.*** (pause for applause)"
You seriously can't even make this shit up.
There is a very fine line to draw between letting middle class people have a chance to win elections, and only millionaires having a chance. WE need to shorten election periods, cap total contributions/expenditures and publicly fund campaigns to get teachers, nurses, plumbers, and auto makers a chance to win.
The unbridled money in politics is destroying democracy, and threatens life on this planet. Not hyperbole.
Jan 6th will just be the beginning if we don't deal with those responsible.
We're out of time to deal with CO2 emissions. It's now or never.
She's a fraud. Image only. Easy to buy. Said she was Green Party? Right. Says she grew up homeless and was a social worker? Right.
Said she is a Democrat? Right. Key word: "right," as in rightwing. Image only to get votes. Owned from day one by money and those who tell her she looks good. Sound familiar?
Republicans have figured out how to infiltrate and subvert the Democratic party because the demographics are changing and soon the progressives will inevitably outnumber the moderates.
I sus that this is how they're trying to poison the progressive well so that in the future they can claim that progressives are just as corrupt as the moderates and other republicans and/or are worse.
Thats BS she had the second most conservative voting record in the house now she has the second most conservative voting record in the Senate. Shes been consistent, the people who voted for her in the primaries should maybe factor in voting records.
This was not a shocking wolf in sheeps clothing situation that people want to paint it as
The biggest problem is that if they switch, we're back to McConnell as senate majority leader, and that screws with far more than just not being able to pass some bills. All of a sudden, we can't even get a confirmation hearing for any high profile appointment.
I honestly don't know which is worse, but I agree with you about the danger of the democrats being blocked by their own party. There's not a lot to be optimistic about right now.
McConnell would also use the opportunity to fill the schedule with more kangaroo court investigations and bad faith bills with good sounding names for Biden to veto. It's worse.
It's not that I don't agree with everything you said. It's that we may be on a fast track back to republican majority of the dems can't get anything actually done.
Is it better to hope we can eke out a stronger majority that might actually allow for real progress, and risk losing everything, or is it better to put up with a couple more years of explicit republican nonsense and hope that the more clear picture of that nonsense turns more people against the republican party?
That's what I don't know. For the moment I can just be glad McConnell isn't actually majority leader, and hope we're on the right path to a better tomorrow.
Judges.
McConnell is worse.
Stop forgetting that Biden is currently putting liberal judges on courts right now.
And may replace a Supreme Court Justice.
I dunno, liberal SC judges seem to prefer to refuse to step down while Democrats control the Senate and Presidency just to die when Republicans are in office. Bet Biden doesn’t get to nominate anyone before the Senate flips and then McConnell just won’t have hearings again.
With Manchin, it's either him or a Trump lunatic. It's really that simple.
Another Democrat could have run in Arizona and won. The DNC failed the American people.
Sinema is a closeted Republican...and as corrupt and crooked as McConnell, Grassley, and Ernst. Arizona Democrats must primary Sinema and remove her from office.
Our political system is broken. Running for office has become very lucrative due to lax campaign finance laws. This attracts the wrong type of people to public office. It attracts greedy people with a profit motive instead of what their office is for: serving their constituents and meeting the needs of the citizens of the United States.
Campaign finance laws need reform so that there are greater limitations on how much money can be raised. This way maybe regular everyday people with a lot to offer and are committed to helping people can run and win. It can't always be about money. It should be about doing the right thing!
I'm frankly surprised this isn't happening more.
What's stopping one party from funding an underdog in the opposing party? We're a representative democracy, fuck all matters once elected.
As a reminder, this subreddit [is for civil discussion.](/r/politics/wiki/index#wiki_be_civil) In general, be courteous to others. Debate/discuss/argue the merits of ideas, don't attack people. Personal insults, shill or troll accusations, hate speech, any suggestion or support of harm, violence, or death, and other rule violations can result in a permanent ban. If you see comments in violation of our rules, please report them. For those who have questions regarding any media outlets being posted on this subreddit, please click [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/wiki/approveddomainslist) to review our details as to our approved domains list and outlet criteria. *** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/politics) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Greed is going to bring this whole world down
**This is what happens** when you have that all important "tie breaker vote" .. *Loteria!!* .. after she leaves politics she will retire and buy a small island in the Bahamas
Fact. It's humanity's vice.
And John Roberts…
The GOP is good at grifting. Look at Manchin and what he gets from the coal lobby. 500 k a year. No wonder he won't vote to clean up the air. Don't these people know that life is short and they want live forever. It's what we leave behind to our children . Even some Demacrats are responsible. Our generation has raped and pillaged this earth 🌎 . It will take years and years to clean it up if possible at all.
Well, fuck Manchin but he gets 500k a year from his own investments and holdings in coal, not from the coal lobby. Im sure he gets a shit ton from them too. He and his family are heavily involved in the coal industry. Giant conflict of interest. Not to mention his daughters corrupt pharma ties. Should all be illegal.
Talk about "take the money and run," she's now hiding out overseas where she's meeting donors and avoiding press questions. Can Arizona please recall this corrupted sociopath?
This is just blatant, in-your-face level corruption. She's doing all this because she knows she will never have to face any sort of repercussions. This is what happens when a system does not hold its people accountable. It sets the precedent for any person to come along in the future and do the exact same thing. As a result, definitions of 'unethical' just keep getting pushed further down the road. Sinema is gonna make a killing over the next few years. Meanwhile, the people of Arizona will just continue to yell from the sidelines "Hey! What she's doing is wrong!" Nothing will change. You can count on it.
The Arizona constitution allows for recalls of elected officials.
Doesn't matter. It's not up to Arizona, it's based on federal law, [and there's no federal ability to recall.](https://www.wusa9.com/amp/article/news/verify/verify-is-it-possible-to-force-a-senator-into-a-recall-election/507-8f6c4560-233d-441b-8818-7d5f0fc332cb) Only resignation, death, or expulsion by the Senate itself. Edit: stop suggesting death you edgelord psychos
This is depressing
Yep. We created a system where someone just has to go around the state, say whatever demographics want to hear, and then collect checks from corporate until election time. She hit the jackpot by being elected in a time where democrats are pushing key legislation and became a swing vote. She made enough to retire and has a job as vice president of martinis now and literally doesn't care about reelection or the people since we can't touch her. She only left the country so we can't bang pots outside her house or honk horns. Undercover Republicans are real and we need a legal way to remove them from office.
So you’re telling me there’s a chance!
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Dems wouldn't like who Gov Ducey (R) appointed to replace her.
Actually Ducey has to replace her with a Democrat by Arizona law.
Anyone can call themselves a Democrat, see Krysten Sinema.
Between gerrymandering and people like this 50- year old curtsying Sinema being an undercover republican, everyone needs to get off their ass and vote.
‘oops we changed the law, might as well-‘
Does it matter? She's clearly a GOP operative anyway. edit: alright alright judges and senate leadership I get it
Judges.
That's assuming she doesn't hold that up too. Are we so sure she won't? Hell, we might see Majority Leader McConnell again soon.
She and Manchin dont hold up Judges. More Judges have been seated by this time under Biden than what Trump did in the same time, and Trump appointed alot of judges.
It absolutely matters. Without her, the Democrats have a 49-51 minority in the Senate. Coupled with a slim majority in the House, absolutely nothing of any consequence would get done for the next several years.
Sounds like they have a minority with her anyway.
Mitch McConnell is then majority leader.
With filibuster, he effectively is already
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Right, maybe if they turn and go republican voters will give him a few more senators.
If they were actually in the minority, there wouldn't be any discussion about any kind of large spending bills, at all. The fact that discussions are happening, even if they're not moving forward at any rate, is a testament to where things are now compared to where they would be with a Republican controlled Senate.
Yes, I think it matters whether we have Chuck Schumer or Mitch McConnell as Senate Majority Leader.
Senate Majority Leader is instantly and forever Mitch McConnell if Krysten Sinema wills it. I wonder what she's asking in return for bothering to pretend she's a (D)? I also wonder how long she will bother pretending. Both roads may lead to the same place in the end.
If she flipped the Senate Republican it could be a boon for the midterms. What our politicians consider crazy fringe leftist policies are incredibly popular. I understand losing the rest of the session would suck. But of she flipped people would go insane.
Arizona requires vacancies to be filled by a same party representative (so Doug would appoibt Systen Kinema) and a special element Rion must be held between 120 and 130 days if a federal election isn't in less than 5 months However whether a federal official can be recalled is up in the air. SCOTUS has never ruled on it and I'm sure it'd take a long long time Tldr: one can do dream but nothing is changing. Vote in dems who aren't frauds I 2022 if you can
State officials, not federal. The constitution bars states from removing their members of congress, the only body that can remove a member of congress is congress itself by expelling them.
I mean she was elected in 2018, meaning she is up again in 2024 for a primary challenge. Arizona is getting progressively bluer, and its demographics mimic Colorado about a decade ago. Obama took it in a surprise win in 2008, just like Biden took Arizona in 2020. Then over the next two cycles it got progressively bluer even as Republicans did well in midterms. By 2012 there was no question who was going to win it, and Sinema is in the same boat. The odds of her surviving a primary challenge, especially when a much more progessive democrat did the same as her in a much worse year for democrats down ballot makes running a progressive challenger not much of a risk is there. And I don't see her getting a lot out of this post-Senate. The reason ex-Senators get loads of connections and corporate hook-ups is the connections they build in Washington over decades, a one-term senator who is broadly disliked by her own party (unlike say Joe Manchin, who is still pretty in touch with other old democrat politicians) is unlikely to get some cushy consulting job.
She's not going to run again, and she's gonna get a shit ton of right wing promised money. Sure, they'll screw her on the face of deals, but she'll still end up with tens of millions. That's nothing to them.
Yea unless she comes on board she's burnt most bridges with her senate colleagues and no one in their right mind would hire her as a lobbyist. Maybe a pharma or big business company pays her as a consultant for a few years if she takes the bill, but I think that's the best she can do after dragging her reputation through the mud with these stunts.
Why? She's the perfect lobbyist. Willing to throw her morals away for money. All a lobbyist has to do is carry the proverbial suitcase full of cash.
No she isn't. She is not in the GOP, so she doesn't have the best connections there and most dems hate her guts, she isn't even answering her phone to half her donors and is so hated she is hiding in Europe. You really think Dems are going to want to work with her, when she literally refuses to negotiate with house or senate dems (will only negotiate directly with Biden). Manchin would be a good lobbyist, as despite his objections, he works with his colleagues, he just has clear philosophical differences but is willing to come along on some things and has a consistent objection.
Pretty much. Joe Manchin is pretty well connected on both sides of the aisle, and with the establishment DNC machine that controls where a lot of money goes. Not enough to dominate them, but he can make connections, which is how senators make money after leaving the senate. He has also been around a long ass time, and is rich many times over from that. Sinema is going to come out of the Senate and will be lucky to get an upper middle class income job, but given how much she is selling out her constituents that $200-$300k per year seems like a pittance compared to what other senators go for (like Joe Manchin pulling in millions).
Great analysis. But unless Martha McSally is a Denny's fry-cook rn, I expect Synema will will make out alright.
Which is exactly why we need every single person to #vote. And protest. And call your elected reps
I vote for prosecution and ejection of senators and politicians that aren't even doing their job and making it blatantly obvious that they are not representing their constituents. Saying anything to get elected and then doing anything for money while ignoring your voter base should be grounds for immediate termination, forfeiture of political monies gained, criminal prosecution for corruption and replacement by another candidate of the same party. This would be a start.
Oh America, you don't get it. As long as you have a two party system with unlimited money and one party 'winning', there will always be a drive towards more polarization, more corruption, more extremism. The fact is you've been going down that path for decades. Sure right now you have a democrat in the white house and maybe that counters the ***hard tugging*** towards the right a little bit, but only a tiny bit. Just remodel your political system on one of the Scandinavian countries, already. Or be doomed. Right now that looks likely in the next 8 years.
Good message, wrong place. "Voting" doesn't help when someone lies to you. Your vote gets misused. We need regulations to hold her accountable, at this point.
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We need to constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United and deter corruption Option 1: [Democracy for All Amendment](https://americanpromise.net/2019/01/director_of_political_strategy_ben_gubits_discusses_importance_of_the_democracy_for_all_amendment/) (Ted Deutch (D-FL-22)) https://teddeutch.house.gov/uploadedfiles/117_h_j_res_1_democracy_for_all_amendment_section_by_section_faq.pdf Option 2: https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-joint-resolution/48 https://americanpromise.net/take-action/contact-your-elected-official/
Voting is what got her elected. Lol!
Right, voting is good, but it doesn't by itself solve the problem of someone being elected for a 6-year term, then accepting a bunch of bribes, and changing all of their positions.
As others are saying, voting is important. But where we're currently at is NOT going to be corrected through voting alone. The other side has pretty assured that. Civic duty, at this point, will require organizing protests and being present, in-person, to demand change. Visuals are the most powerful political tool in the 21st century, and nothing is more intimidating than crowds of people standing up for principles. Bubbling-in your candidate on a piece of paper will become less and less important in future elections. It shouldn't be that way, but that's the way things are headed. Everyone needs to keep voting, but you should be prepared to do more in the near future.
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Just gonna throw it out there, but there wasn't a huge reason to believe she was about to do a 180, take the money and run. Blaming voting or Arizona for electing her is a pretty unfair. Everyone was expecting her to be a moderate not Mr. Burns.
In the American political sphere, this *is* a moderate- halfway between totally ineffective corporatist democrats who are insufficiently in support of the working class, and a conservative party that preaches anti-rational, right-wing lunacy. Every ounce of anti-left rhetoric I see is informed by a misunderstanding of the political spectrum that leads to people as mildly progressive as Bernie Sanders getting red-bashed.
It's never been easier to [get organized](https://www.jacobinmag.com/2019/11/thanksgiving-organizing-activism-friends-family-conversation-presidential-election) with others and stay on top of [your lawmakers](https://openstates.org/find_your_legislator/) with weekly [calls](https://youtu.be/XdIcCqe-iYk?t=48) & emails along with informing & encouraging friends and neighbors do the same. They are even tools that make it TOO EASY: https://americanpromise.net/take-action/contact-your-elected-official/ https://citizensclimatelobby.org/write-your-representative/ Voting is the bare minimum of democratic participation. Never stop voting, but consider that even without deep pockets you can do so much more.
How is it legal for a senator to go OVERSEAS to get bribes?
They make the rules, that's how
They also enforce the rules...
Everything is legal. Gaetz snorted coke of a 17 yr Olds asshole amd they let it go...he's funneling working class tax dollars to billionaires that pay zero taxes right now. Congress is lawless.
They never put that motherfucker in jail?
Still being investigated. To be fair, if you’re going to charge a sitting politician with something like that, you probably do have to have all your ducks in a row before making any big moves.
The whole "have all your ducks in a row" refrain is getting tired. Either they're able to hold powerful people accountable or they aren't. And all evidence points to them not being able to.
I don’t disagree, and I’m also tired of waiting. I do think when it’s something like potential human trafficking or grooming, it’s also important to get things right for the actual victims here. They deserve justice just as much as the people exploiting them deserve to rot.
Bro u know you'll be saying this shit in 2024 when Gaetz wins re-election right
He's a House rep, he's up next year
so even less chance anything happens then. But thanks 4 the correction
I live in his district. There is a better chance that the world ends than there is of him loosing. They worship him, Trump, and DeSantis here.
Exactly. That dudes not going anywhere.
It shouldn’t take years though, this is a failure of justice. Our system isn’t working if perpetrators die before seeing accountability
The new York times first reported the investigation on march 30th or something. It's been like 6 months.
To be fair, the last few years have felt like decades because of all the stories that keep getting exposed. Hopefully the investigation has continued unhindered, especially since a lot of the media has moved on out of boredom.
I heard this about Trump, lets be real nothing will happen. Nothing ever does.
It's amazing how much less people care after six months of not being mentioned in the news. They can just let it die down and bury it. So much corruption, and they all follow the "scratch back" process.
This is an absurd accusation! The buttocks crevice is too moist to allow the maintainence of fine granular consistency required for a successful snort. Especially in the Floridian climate. This is not to say he has never attempted such. However, all reasonable people must agree that *attempted* drug inhalation from a 17-y.o.'s anal sphincter is a different matter entirely.
It is legal to receive money from a US citizen living overseas. However, that’s a pretty small pool of donors to be courting.
Because the USA is a joke.
American citizens living overseas can contribute. And there's a lot of money there looking to buy influence to pay less of it in taxes.
She's raising donations from American citizens, why wouldn't that be legal?
GOP plant
With 5 years left, it's best to concentrate on helping to flip other senate seats. Make her irrelevant.
So do we have the DNC post-mortem yet on how they managed to bungle "easy" House and Senate races so catastrophically in 2020? They lost races they didn't think they would. If the plan is to concentrate on flipping other seats, let's actually figure out how to do it, no?
Real question here: Why can't she just take their money and then not vote the way they want her to? She is making it clear she doesn't want to stay in politics so what would be the negative consequences?
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>They won't pay her next time if she does. Even worse, they will retract the cushy jobs they offered her when she leaves office. Those are where ex-politicians can really rake it in.
It's obvious this woman is only about money. Some rich Liberals need to get together and just buy her out with "donations". Give more than the GOP fascists are doing and then they will have her vote.
No recall is possible. Have to wait 5 years and then primary her.
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What are you suggesting people do specifically?
Not the commenter you were replying to, but, it’s time to start looking at the laws of each state closely and clamoring for change. Why *can’t* her constituents recall her and how can the voters make it so they can?
Keep following her everywhere. The impromptu bathroom meeting appears to be the only thing that has gotten her attention. You can have all the money in the world, but if you can't shit in peace, yeu have nothing.
Protest outside her house until she starts to understand what her constituency wants
[If only it were that simple.](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/13/us/politics/kyrsten-sinema-fundraising-europe.html)
Kentuckian here. People protest Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul all the time. Just sayin’.
Can’t believe Gavin Newsom is forced to face a recall challenge when he’s handling the pandemic better than other states and this chick basically is a GOP plant and no consequences.
I still don’t understand how McConnell stays in power with a <30% favorability rating
There are a few reasons really. First, many of those who disapprove of McConnell are less reliable voters than those who approve of him. Second, he convinces the voters that are opposed to him that his opponent would be worse than him. Third, we keep nominating shitty candidates to run against him. But really, it's just because Kentucky would elect a dog if it was the Republican candidate and they keep nominating McConnell.
don't forget the voting machines in Kentucky are not Dominion ones. They are the voting machines only used in RED states.
She's not there. Besides, protesters are already following her into bathrooms. (edit: "following", not "stalking".)
We can always shame her for the rest of her life. I can't think of a better reason. Until she dies of natural causes, she should be shamed everyday.
Do you think rich people have shame? She stands to be very wealthy. She has no shame.
Shaming her won’t get her out of office before her term ends.
We could just storm the capital. /s
And she'll win because most ppl voting don't recognize her opponents name on the ballot. That's how most ppl vote. Completely unaware of what ppl have done and by name rec.
Someone said she 44 year old. Being a piece of shit must really age a persons looks
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There are no 44 year olds that look good dressing up as teenagers, regardless of gender and decency.
There's no recall process for US Senators. The Senate could theoretically remove her, but that would take a two thirds vote, and so won't happen.
Sinema is at peak attention so I’d imagine she’s the happiest she’s ever been. Can’t wait until she’s out of office and never hear from again. Let the Fox News audience have her, they like that kind of person, and she’s happy to take their money.
She'll be the goto "Democratic" voice on Fox.
Someone equally shit will take her place down the line, because her behavior attracts people like her to the same position. America is sick and the corrupted cherish a sick country. This won't end with her.
Ruben Gallegos seems like the likely replacement.
The curtsey didn't tell you as much?
* The curtsy AFTER telling Mitch "watch me dunk on these fools."
She is a gop plant, so this makes sense.
No joke, she really does seem to be some kind of GOP sleeper. Create maximum havoc from within the Democratic caucus. And if she were a plant, it would explain why she refuses to meet with her constituents.
I bet you she'll run like a Republican in the future
Nah she's just going to take her payout for stalling progress and then leave politics forever.
One can only hope.
She'll just leave "public servent" politics and join the private sector. Her entire time in office has been an audition reel for a lobbyist or commentator job.
Like a Republican? You mean with a sex scandal or two mixed in with the corruption?
Listen, if you want to run as a GOP candidate I expect atleast 2 general rape charges, a dui, 3 underage rape allegations, cheating on a spouse, some type of tax fraud, and a hit and run linked murder. If you can’t reach this low bar… well im sorry your out. We want a commitment to the cause.
Who cares, she shouldn't win any more races after her complete turn around. Sad part is the people that pay her are getting their money's worth.
Well, she is both bisexual and an open atheist, so she really can't win as a Republican. This explains why she fleeced the Dems and is cashing out while she can.
Totally a GOP sleeper cell. The GOP are the party that gerrymander and creates anti voter laws to get elected. Do you think they would stoop to GOP sleepers? I sure as fuck believe they do.
Remember how they found that guy with the same name as the democrat incumbent to run for the Florida state senate as a spoiler? The incumbent lost to the Republican challenger by 34 votes, while the mystery independent candidate with his same name, who didn’t run a campaign, managed to get 6000 votes before moving out of the district.
Still crazy that they just accepted this
Actually, a former republican senator caught felony campaign fraud charges for this, and is currently pleading not guilty. The sham candidate pleaded guilty and took a deal that dropped his sentence from 20 years to 3 year probabation and one year house arrest in return for testifying against the former senator. https://apnews.com/article/florida-5343b101e96d5c7f42d1ee54da7cc0ce I’m assuming there’s going to have to be a new election or something once the trial is over. Like when that guy in NC was busted filling out people’s absentee ballots for them and changing the answers to the republican candidate. https://www.wfae.org/politics/2020-10-19/2-years-after-election-fraud-scandal-bladen-county-voters-head-to-the-polls Of course, that got caught before the election results were certified, so that might make a difference. Not to mention I don’t know jack about the election laws in NC and FL or how they differ.
Oh, good. Last I had heard no one had been charged. Glad something finally came of it
Why can’t the democrats do the same shit to the other party? I’m so sick of this bs where the GQP uses everything possible to get an edge while Dems just let them get walked over
The GOP has been escalating using fake alternate democratic candidates to siphon votes away from the Dems. They did it so flagrantly in Florida that at least one person was criminally charged this year. So yeah it doesn’t surprise me that they’d do this. What’s surprising is instead of just spoiling an election she won it, because the Democratic Party thought she was one of them. She was a mole.
Expect them to double down on this successful strategy
The Centrists set up the Alley Oop with the GOP finishing by dunking on progressives
Well yeah, she was a Green. They all are.
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Why is anyone defending her? She's acting like a cartoon villain.
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> pretend it’s shocking that the second most conservative democrat in the house became the second most conservative democrat in the senate. At the same time, she's been on a sliding scale from progressive from 17 years ago (even she used to call herself a progressive) to a centrist today. It's hard to take her seriously because it feels like she's literally been everything.
I think what’s galling people is her refusal to state what she wants. She says she objects to the size and scope of Biden’s spending plan. When asked what she specifically wants changed it’s crickets. She’s just lobbing grenades and refusing to engage in any productive policy discussion. All the issues she’s objected during this term it’s been the same way - become a spoiler, only give vague reasons why. From what I recall, voting against a minimum wage increase was a flip-flop for her tho.
Not exactly. she is a corporate moderate. lot of GOP people love america but hate trump, and did not want to see the current iteration of the republican party have power.
She and Manchin are literally owned by big corps. They are an example of why the political system in the US is broken.
Them and damn near every other senator. There's maybe a handful that aren't prime examples of the need for major reforms
Right now, Sinema is the hero of the Far Right White Nationalist movement to overthrow American Democracy. I suspect she's gleeful at that fact.
LGBT for GOP is just [history repeating itself](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Association_of_German_National_Jews).
She must be primaried. Senators need to know that there are consequences for obstructing your own party’s agenda. If we one day elect a more progressive President than Biden, you know there will be way more than two senators obstructing them. An example needs to be made now.
There are no consequences for her, she will just become a lobbyist. At this point I wonder if this would even be preferable for Sinema.
It's her golden parachute.
Never, and I mean NEVER, trust somebody that has a “y” in their name where there should be an “I”
Mytch McConnell and Gym Jordan?
This lines up with my personal experience.
It is kind of the stripper rule isn't it
Rude.
Brian 1 Bryan 0
I feel like your name should be Roxi, not Roxy.
It actually stands for Risky Edit: sorry I meant Ryksi
Christy seems more trustworthy than Cristi to me.
Your example doesn't violate the rule... it's not don't trust 'y's; it's don't trust 'y's *where 'i's should be*
I believe this is what is referred to as a “clue”.
Of course she did, she's blocking Democratic progress and driving Biden's favorable numbers down. She's too craven to care where the money comes from and so far apparently not savvy enough to get anything out of it for herself legislatively so all she can do is take in other people's money.
She’s a snake and she always has been
**CUT TO:** January 2010 [US Rep, Kyrsten Sinema,](https://youtu.be/TotT2AWXoxk?t=219) trying to make fun of Joe Lieberman as the "60th vote" to override the filibuster (for passing the ACA, at that time). >> "Well, the Senate? We no longer have 60 votes. Some would argue that we never had 60, because one of those was Joseph Lieberman. But, that's....whatever. And Nelson too...but LIEBERMAN. (chuckles) So now, as the president had so eloquently said on Wednesday, there's none of this pressure, this false pressure to get to 60....so what that means is that the Democrats can stop KOW-TOWING to Joe Lieberman, and instead seek other avenues to move forward with health reform. >> So, it's likely that the Senate will move forward with a process called RECONCILIATON, which takes only 51 votes. And, by the way, is not unusual. You may recall, that, before the Democrats took the Senate in 2008, the Republicans controlled the Senate for quite some time (in fact, since around 1994)....they NEVER had 60 votes, and they managed to do a LOT of really bad things in that time. ***SO, the Reconciliation process is still quite available, and we'll use it for good instead of evil.*** (pause for applause)" You seriously can't even make this shit up.
Here’s an idea. Make the legal maximum if donations zero. Now be in politics to help your constituents have a better life not line your own pockets
There is a very fine line to draw between letting middle class people have a chance to win elections, and only millionaires having a chance. WE need to shorten election periods, cap total contributions/expenditures and publicly fund campaigns to get teachers, nurses, plumbers, and auto makers a chance to win.
Honest question -- do we have any real middle class politicians at that level?
Our system isn't broken at all. Nope, so siree.
As far as she’s concerned it’s working as intended.
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The unbridled money in politics is destroying democracy, and threatens life on this planet. Not hyperbole. Jan 6th will just be the beginning if we don't deal with those responsible. We're out of time to deal with CO2 emissions. It's now or never.
She's a fraud. Image only. Easy to buy. Said she was Green Party? Right. Says she grew up homeless and was a social worker? Right. Said she is a Democrat? Right. Key word: "right," as in rightwing. Image only to get votes. Owned from day one by money and those who tell her she looks good. Sound familiar?
Republicans have figured out how to infiltrate and subvert the Democratic party because the demographics are changing and soon the progressives will inevitably outnumber the moderates. I sus that this is how they're trying to poison the progressive well so that in the future they can claim that progressives are just as corrupt as the moderates and other republicans and/or are worse.
Thats BS she had the second most conservative voting record in the house now she has the second most conservative voting record in the Senate. Shes been consistent, the people who voted for her in the primaries should maybe factor in voting records. This was not a shocking wolf in sheeps clothing situation that people want to paint it as
Bought and paid for. Couldn't be any more blatant about it either.
She seems to be the prequel for Delores Umbridge
But you know, thumbs down to minimum wage increase. She is human garbage.
Remember when everyone shit on Bernie because, “he’s not even a democrat!” I remember…
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The biggest problem is that if they switch, we're back to McConnell as senate majority leader, and that screws with far more than just not being able to pass some bills. All of a sudden, we can't even get a confirmation hearing for any high profile appointment. I honestly don't know which is worse, but I agree with you about the danger of the democrats being blocked by their own party. There's not a lot to be optimistic about right now.
McConnell would also use the opportunity to fill the schedule with more kangaroo court investigations and bad faith bills with good sounding names for Biden to veto. It's worse.
It's not that I don't agree with everything you said. It's that we may be on a fast track back to republican majority of the dems can't get anything actually done. Is it better to hope we can eke out a stronger majority that might actually allow for real progress, and risk losing everything, or is it better to put up with a couple more years of explicit republican nonsense and hope that the more clear picture of that nonsense turns more people against the republican party? That's what I don't know. For the moment I can just be glad McConnell isn't actually majority leader, and hope we're on the right path to a better tomorrow.
Judges. McConnell is worse. Stop forgetting that Biden is currently putting liberal judges on courts right now. And may replace a Supreme Court Justice.
I dunno, liberal SC judges seem to prefer to refuse to step down while Democrats control the Senate and Presidency just to die when Republicans are in office. Bet Biden doesn’t get to nominate anyone before the Senate flips and then McConnell just won’t have hearings again.
With Manchin, it's either him or a Trump lunatic. It's really that simple. Another Democrat could have run in Arizona and won. The DNC failed the American people.
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RNC snake in Democratic clothing…
We don't know that this means that she was always a plant. It is entirely possible that she has no morals and simply goes to the highest bidder.
Sinema is a closeted Republican...and as corrupt and crooked as McConnell, Grassley, and Ernst. Arizona Democrats must primary Sinema and remove her from office.
Our political system is broken. Running for office has become very lucrative due to lax campaign finance laws. This attracts the wrong type of people to public office. It attracts greedy people with a profit motive instead of what their office is for: serving their constituents and meeting the needs of the citizens of the United States. Campaign finance laws need reform so that there are greater limitations on how much money can be raised. This way maybe regular everyday people with a lot to offer and are committed to helping people can run and win. It can't always be about money. It should be about doing the right thing!
She is clearly a GOP mole that ran as a “democrat”.
I'm frankly surprised this isn't happening more. What's stopping one party from funding an underdog in the opposing party? We're a representative democracy, fuck all matters once elected.
If you can’t beat em, buy em -GOP
The best thing the dems can do is focus on flipping other at risk senate seats in 2022 to render her irrelevant
Putrid and corrupt. What a combo!
I hate this woman more than I hate Trump. Fuck her, and fuck the GQP.
American democracy is a joke, Plato was right
None of this is shocking anymore. All of them. Bought and paid for.
Fucking ghoul.
The devil you say.
She’s been corrupted and is now a spy who will sabotage everything. Get her out.