As we’ve said from the beginning, there is no democracy reform in the world that Senate Republicans will support. And early this morning, Republicans proved it again, by voting against bringing the For the People Act to the floor.
This budget resolution is the first step towards realizing the demands that Indivisibles and activists across the country have been fighting for: an inclusive recovery bill that invests in our communities and addresses the overlapping crises we face.
Once again, the For the People Act finds itself at a critical juncture. With the news that the Census data used in the congressional map-drawing process will now be released on Thursday, it is now more urgent than ever for the Senate to pass this bill into law, and ban partisan gerrymandering once and for all. If not, unscrupulous Republicans will draw themselves into a majority for the foreseeable future, despite regularly getting millions upon millions of fewer votes than their Democratic counterparts.
Today, finally, after wasting time and delaying recovery for the American people, Republicans will vote to move forward with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework (BIF). Let us be clear, this bill does not come close to providing the recovery that families desperately need. In fact, it relies on harmful policies like privatization to pay for the package, instead of making the wealthy and corporations pay their fair share in taxes.
We’re tired of watching this game, so certainly Senate Democrats are getting tired of playing it. Pass a bold reconciliation bill that rebuilds our economy, and doesn’t need Republican votes. Kill the filibuster so we can get to the business of governing. This is getting ridiculous.