Sinema Among Senators Who Didn’t Vote On The January 6 Commission
Arizona’s Sen. Kyrsten Sinema was one of eleven senators that did not cast a vote on a proposal to investigate the January 6, Capitol Hill protest. The proposal failed, needing 60 votes to pass.
Sinema was joined by fellow democrat, Sen. Patty Murray of Washington.
Progressives are furious with the moderate Sinema over her failure to cast a vote for what opponents describe as a “witch hunt.”
Sinema had previously urged her colleagues to support the proposal. She and Sen. Joe Manchin issued a joint statement in support of the commission:
“The events of January 6th were horrific,” the statement read. “We could never have imagined an attack on Congress and our Capitol at the hands of our own citizens. In the hours and days following the attack, Republican and Democratic members of Congress condemned the violence and vowed to hold those responsible accountable so our Democracy will never experience an attack like this again.”
Joint statement with @Sen_JoeManchin on January 6th Commission: pic.twitter.com/03RsLGBEoY
— Kyrsten Sinema (@SenatorSinema) May 25, 2021
The senators who didn’t vote on the bill include:
Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee
Republican Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri
Republican Sen. Mike Braun of Indiana
Republican Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina
Republican Sen. Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma
Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington
Republican Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota
Republican Sen. James Risch of Idaho
Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama
Republican Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania
Sinema offered no insight into her decision to skip the vote. The commission was sold as “bipartisan,” but few believed it would be little more than a third impeachment trial of former president Donald Trump.
Arizona’s junior senator, Mark Kelly, voted in favor of the commission.