Sinema Flames Pelosi in Blistering Statement for 'Inexcusable' Failure to Hold Infrastructure Vote

Prepare for the progressives to lose their ever-loving minds when they read this statement from Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ).

As I reported yesterday, she went back to Arizona before Joe Biden made his trip to Capitol Hill to twist arms. She made clear that she was willing to walk away from any vote on the reconciliation bill, if the progressives were going to play these games to hold up the infrastructure bill to use as leverage to further the chances of the reconciliation bill.

Sinema then sent this out today, just flaming “Democratic leaders.” While not specifically naming anyone, you know that it’s directed right at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). Sinema also takes apart the progressives, calling their effort an “ineffective stunt” to use the infrastructure bill as a “hostage.”

Canceling the U.S. House vote on the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act denies Americans millions of new good-paying jobs and hurts everyday families.

Full statement ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/BM7hrUL3KK

— Kyrsten Sinema (@SenatorSinema) October 2, 2021

“The failure of the U.S. House to hold a vote on the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is inexcusable, and deeply disappointing for communities across our country,” she said in a lengthy statement Saturday. “Denying Americans millions of good-paying jobs, safer roads, cleaner water, more reliable electricity, and better broadband only hurts everyday families. Arizonans, and all everyday Americans, expect their lawmakers to consider legislation on the merits — rather than obstruct new jobs and critical infrastructure investments for no substantive reason. What Americans have seen instead is an ineffective stunt to gain leverage over a separate proposal. My vote belongs to Arizona, and I do not trade my vote for political favors – I vote based only on what is best for my state and the country. I have never, and would never, agree to any bargain that would hold one piece of legislation hostage to another.

Congress was designed as a place where representatives of Americans with valid and diverse views find compromise and common ground. That is why, when President Biden asked me to continue bipartisan infrastructure negotiations, I agreed and helped deliver the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act – a historic, broadly popular plan that reflects a key priority of President Biden’s. My commitment to delivering lasting results is also why I have engaged for months in direct, good faith negotiations over the separate budget reconciliation proposal.

Good-faith negotiations, however, require trust. Over the course of this year, Democratic leaders have made conflicting promises that could not all be kept — and have, at times, pretended that differences of opinion within our party did not exist, even when those disagreements were repeatedly made clear directly and publicly. Canceling the infrastructure vote further erodes that trust. More importantly, it betrays the trust the American people have placed in their elected leaders and denies our country crucial investments to expand economic opportunities.”

Talk about not mincing any words. Frankly, she lights it up with her writing even more than Manchin and makes one believe that she has core principles — a rare thing to see in a politician today, even though I doubtless would disagree with her on a variety of things.

As I said when I wrote about AOC and the progressives greed earlier today, this is ultimately going to get the Democrats nothing because progressives played these games.

Just a reminder, too. While Manchin and Sinema are the face of the moderates and the refusal to go along with this “financial insanity,” other moderates are furious at the game-playing that Pelosi has allowed here as well.

From The Hill:

The delay has also drawn the ire of several other Democrats — Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) and Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.) — who criticized the move on Friday not to bring the bipartisan infrastructure legislation for a vote.

“Along with a group of members, I’ve been working around-the-clock to pass the bipartisan bill, legislation we held craft back in April with my senate colleagues,” Gottheimer said in a statement. “But a small far-left faction of the House of Representatives undermined that agreement and blocked a critical vote on the president’s historic bipartisan infrastructure bill.”

But Sinema and the moderates have shown they will stand in the way of the progressives insanity, even if Pelosi or Biden won’t.