Kyrsten Sinema, Joe Manchin Doom President Joe Biden's Effort To Strike a Deal for Voting Rights Bill

On Thursday evening, Senators Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona paid a visit to the White House, amid a conversation over changing the filibuster and a standstill in the Democrats' efforts to pass legislation expanding government intervention in elections.

Manchin and Sinema both stated earlier in the day that they would not vote to lower the Senate's 60-vote filibuster threshold. They met with President Biden for almost an hour early Thursday evening to discuss voting rights.

Manchin, Sinema vow not to kill filibuster after Biden meeting

To alter the filibuster, all Senate Democrats would have to agree. With Manchin and Sinema's recent resistance, it appears doubtful that such adjustments will be enacted. Sinema's remarks echoed her long-held views on the filibuster and dealt a blow to her colleagues who hoped to pass the bill without the help of Republican senators.

In a statement, Manchin said that there has been broad bipartisan support for protecting the filibuster, including current and past senators, and that the filibuster serves a crucial role in preserving democracy from the whims of the majority while recognizing the Senate minority's voice.

Biden stated during a meeting with senators on Capitol Hill on Thursday evening that he is "not convinced" that Democrats would be successful in enacting legislation to take over federal elections, according to Fox News. Sinema delivered a death blow to the legislative instrument before the meeting when she went to the Senate floor to make a strong defense of it. Manchin waited until after the meeting to write a long statement outlining why he opposes the filibuster's elimination.

Manchin's censure came after Biden's administration had had a turbulent 48 hours. In addition to rejecting Biden's testing or immunization rule for businesses with more than 100 employees, the Supreme Court also struck down his voting statute on Thursday. On Wednesday, inflation hit a 40-year high of 7% while the president's approval rating fell to an all-time low of 33% in a Quinnipiac poll.

Democrats' odds of passing voting rights bill look bad

Manchin cited his old colleague, the late Senator Robert Byrd, a renowned figure in Senate history, in explaining his choice. According to Democratic Senator Tim Kaine, Biden spoke for roughly 15 minutes in a closed-door meeting on Capitol Hill before taking questions, including some from Manchin.

Following the meeting, Biden confessed that he doesn't see how voting rights legislation can pass without the cooperation of Manchin and Sinema, as per Daily Mail. Biden, who has spent days putting pressure on the legislators, was handed yet another big setback by the two senators' words. After Biden's $2 trillion Build Back Better Act reached a snag in December when Manchin claimed he didn't support crucial measures, top Democrats shifted their focus to election reform.

As a result, the White House and congressional leadership are looking for another way to win before the November elections. Following the meeting on Thursday, a furious Biden admitted that his efforts to implement electoral reforms had temporarily come to a halt, telling reporters that we missed this opportunity.

Manchin has stated that any changes to Senate rules must be approved by both Republicans and Democrats and that while some members of his party have altered their minds on the filibuster, New York Post reported.