Senate Democrats Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona “don’t care about” black Americans and other minorities, according to Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters of California.
Waters appeared on MSNBC on Sunday to denounce Manchin and Sinema, who have refused to support a Democratic plan to allow the Senate to do away with the filibuster in order to pass elections legislation that would supersede state controls over elections.
During her appearance, Waters also tossed in blame directed at former President Donald Trump and Republicans loyal to him.
“This is a very difficult time for Democrats,” Waters said on MSNBC. “It’s a difficult time for this country.”
Waters, who has blamed Trump for a variety of ills ever since he was elected in 2016, did not abandon that line.
“Of course we have Republicans who are basically following Trump and the kind of division that he’s causing among, not only, you know, people of color, but the kind of division he’s causing between the so-called haves and the have-nots,” she said.
“And so Republicans are not going to confront Trump. They’re going to do whatever they’re told.
“They don’t have the spine to stand up against him. And so we’re in a difficult position.”
Then the race card emerged.
“We have two Democrats, Manchin and Sinema, and they are holding up the Democratic agenda. They have decided that they are going to stick with support of the filibuster, and they don’t care whether or not they undermine the rights of minorities and blacks in this country.”
Waters said black Americans “have fought very hard to make this a stronger democracy. We’ve worked very hard for equal rights.”
Manchin and Sinema “are basically saying they don’t care. They don’t care about us. They don’t care what it means to weaken our ability to participate in this democracy.”
Waters then insisted a conspiracy was afoot.
“And what everybody better understand is this democracy is at stake. And these domestic terrorists are organizing,” she said, claiming Trump is supporting them.
Asked what Democrats need to do to enact their agenda, Waters said Republicans are at fault, and she gave Manchin and Sinema one more round of trash talk.
“It’s not what Democrats need to do. We’re doing everything that can be done. It’s what Republicans need to do. Why is it we don’t have one Republican, not one, that will stand up for the voting rights for people in this country?” she said.
“And so I hear a lot of talk about our president. He’s fighting as hard as he can. I don’t know why people think that he can make Manchin and make Sinema do what is right.
“They have sent the signal. They have been very clear about it. They don’t care about minorities. They don’t care about blacks. They don’t care about people in their own districts who they’re going to deny their voting rights and undermine their voting rights,” Waters said.
“And so it’s not so much what can Democrats do. We’re doing everything that we can,” she said, calling for Republicans to support a carve-out of the filibuster that would allow Democrats to have vast powers to control local elections from Washington, including elections in states that have passed election integrity laws of which Democrats disapprove.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
