Nicolle Wallace Criticizes Biden Inaction on Voting Rights: He’s Presided Over ‘Greatest Rollback’ in Modern History

MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace asked on Tuesday about frustration among Democratic voters that President Joe Biden and Senate Democrats aren’t doing more on voting rights.

Politico White House reporter Eugene Daniels noted the criticism Biden has received from progressives for not doing more on voting rights, saying that people are still wondering after his speech “what does that mean you’re going to do.”

Wallace commended the speech, but added, “If you see something as an existential threat to our democracy, you usually have to be ready to roll out actions that match that that dire declaration if you’re the president of the United States of America. And I think that what people feel is lacking is that action plan.”

Boston Globe senior opinion writer Kimberly Atkins Stohr said that Biden needs to impress the importance of protecting voting rights upon Democrats, arguing that after Democratic voters turned out in droves and won their party the Senate, what they’re hearing right now is “not enough.”

Wallace agreed with that sentiment:

As Kim said, you know, Democrats went out and voted. They overcame the hurdle of the pandemic, the hurdle of the ex-president saying lunatic things about in-person voting and absentee voting and mail-in voting. They did everything they were supposed to do, and this president has now presided over the greatest rollback of access to the right to vote in modern history. 22 new laws, 389 in total making their way through all 48 states. That is an inconvenient fact, but that is the fact of this president’s record in terms of what’s happened in this country when it comes to voting rights. Why can’t he convene a meeting every morning at 6 AM with Joe Manchin, who has said he is for something — it isn’t everything — and get to 50 and then push for filibuster reform, why can’t that start today?

Former DOJ official Matthew Miller said given the likelihood Manchin won’t change his mind on filibuster reform, the onus is not just on Biden but on Democrats to keep fighting.

“I very much get the activist frustration that it’s an uphill battle because there are people in our party who somehow think it is an acceptable situation that it takes only 50 votes to pass a tax cut but 60 votes to protect democracy. It’s an untenable situation, but unfortunately, there’s not an easy way out for the White House or anyone right now,” he added.

Wallace questioned if it’s really only activists and not “Democratic voters who are frustrated that they do everything they’re asked to do, they turn out, they vote, they revive Joe Biden’s ailing primary efforts, they, you know, are all in.”

You can watch above, via MSNBC.