Democrats pivot to voting rights legislation, push for 'nuclear option' as tensions boil over

Although failed negotiations between President Biden and West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin have pushed the Build Back Better Act into 2022, Senate Democrats are switching gears and pursuing a “nuclear option” to change the filibuster and bypass a months-long stalemate on voting rights legislation.

While there is no clear path forward, Democrats – facing intense pressure to pass the election reform legislation – have reportedly met with Manchin to ask him to support their efforts. Manchin, however, has continued to push for any rule changes to be bipartisan.

Democrats have grown increasingly frustrated and have emphasized the need to pass election reform legislation before any other legislation is considered – preferably before the end of the year.

“I’m struck by the speed with which we decided to change the rules when it came to the economy,” Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock told reporters, referring to the one-time exemption to the filibuster for the debt ceiling. “But this has dragged on for months. Our democracy is clearly in peril.”

Warnock isn’t alone in wanting to expedite the election reform legislation, which could pass with only Democratic votes if the voting rules were changed.

“I say that we need to change the rules so that we can get voter protection legislation done,” said Sen. Mazie Hirono, while recognizing they didn’t yet have the votes to do so.

Back in June Sen. Manchin made clear his opposition to the Democrats' "For the People Act," writing that "voting and election reform that is done in a partisan manner will all but ensure partisan divisions continue to deepen."

On Wednesday, Manchin's frustration with being pressured by the left-wing media to go along with his party on these two issues boiled over. He "made clear that he’s getting sick and tired of being grilled about his position in the negotiations with Biden," according to The Hill.

“Guys, I’m not negotiating with any of you all. You can ask all the questions you want. Guys, let me go. This is bull****. You’re bull****,” he told a reporter from The Huffington Post, according to the outlet.

Tensions have been growing among Democrats about their inability to pass the election reform legislation – issues which were considered a top priority when they took the Congress and the White House last January.

Quickly moving on after realizing the Build Back Better Act would not come to a vote before 2022, Schumer vowed to pass voting rights legislation by the end of the year, noting there are “active discussions going on.”

“I think there's a universal view in our caucus that we need to get something done. ... There’s a strong belief in the Senate that we can restore the Senate, and at the same time, deal with voting rights, and that's what we're aiming to do,” he said.

In an effort to find a path forward, Schumer appointed Sens. Kaine, King and Tester to spearhead discussions within the caucus about how to change the Senate rules.

The three met with Manchin on Tuesday and stressed that negotiations with their moderate colleague were ongoing. “Little by little we’re making progress,” Kaine said about the discussions with Manchin, adding that they have a “narrow task" but are "making some progress.”

But there is still Democratic opposition to making changes to the 60-vote threshold required for most legislation and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema has publicly stated that she doesn’t support nixing the filibuster.

To get that rules change through the Senate, Democrats would have to deploy the nuclear option to change the rules with only a simple majority – a measure Manchin has also opposed, stating that changes to the Senate rules should be bipartisan.

Otherwise, Democrats would need 60 votes, meaning the support of at least 10 GOP senators.

“All of my discussions have been with bipartisan, Republicans and Democrats. The rules change should be done to be where we all have input in this rules change because we’re going to have to live with it,” Manchin said.