It is not just all Senate Democrats that support The Freedom to Vote Act, momentum is growing in the White House for filibuster reform.
The Freedom to Vote Act Is A Big Step Forward
The Freedom to Vote Act would make election day a federal holiday, provide automatic national voter registration and establish floors on early voting, same-day registration, mail voting, and drop boxes that states could not go under.
The bill would also protect local election officials, establish cybersecurity standards, and require presidential candidates to report contacts with foreign governments. It aims to end gerrymandering.
It is a serious piece of legislation that would improve federal elections in the United States and bring long-overdue reforms to the system.
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The White House Is Moving Toward Filibuster Reform
Video:
This is significant. On #MorningJoe "There is growing momentum within the corridors of the West Wing and in the Oval Office to support some sort of filibuster change." pic.twitter.com/ElKGBwzocu
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) September 14, 2021
The AP’s Jonathan Lemire said on MNBC’s Morning Joe, “Talks have intensified behind the scenes at the White House on this very subject matter. Senior aides I’ve talked to say that though no final decision has been made, there is growing momentum within the corridors of the West Wing and in the Oval Office to support some sort of filibuster change and work with those senators who have been resistant to that. Manchin is not alone. He is sort of the face of the more moderate Democratic senators who have been resistant to say the size of the infrastructure package or the filibuster.”
Once all Senate Democrats are behind a single bill, the White House could bring everyone together to hammer out a change to the filibuster to pass it.
The Goal Is Not To Get 60 Votes On The Freedom to Vote Act
Immediately, the media doomed the bill because it doesn’t have 60 votes in the Senate, but getting 60 votes is not the goal of the legislation.
The goal is to get the support of all Senate Democrats so that it is possible to pass the legislation without 60 votes.
One should not be surprised if this bill ends up being passed by a filibuster carve out or in the reconciliation package. It is not a coincidence that Democrats are working on voting rights while putting together a reconciliation bill.
Of course, the bill won’t get 60 votes, but it is a major step towards protecting voting rights with the support of 50 Senate Democrats and Vice President Harris.
In the big picture, things are moving forward on voting rights.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
