Biden White House Praises Sinema After Party Switch — Pointedly Notes ‘Does Not Change The New Democratic Majority’

R: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

The Biden White House praised Senator Kyrsten Sinema upon news of her party switch, with WH Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre pointedly noting the decision “does not change the new Democratic majority control of the Senate.”

Senator Sinema is making the rounds to announce that she is now a registered independent, a decision that comes days after Democrats solidified their Senate majority with Sen. Raphael Warnock’s victory in the Georgia runoff.

In a statement emailed to Mediaite, Jean-Pierre praised Sinema for her help in passing parts of President Joe Biden’s agenda, and predicted that help would continue:

Statement by White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre

Senator Sinema has been a key partner on some of the historic legislation President Biden has championed over the last 20 months, from the American Rescue Plan to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, from the Inflation Reduction Act to the CHIPS and Science Act, from the PACT Act to the Gun Safety Act to the Respect for Marriage Act, and more. We understand that her decision to register as an independent in Arizona does not change the new Democratic majority control of the Senate, and we have every reason to expect that we will continue to work successfully with her.

In an exclusive interview, Sinema told CNN’s Jake Tapper “I’ve registered as an Arizona independent. I know some people might be a little bit surprised by this, but, actually, I think it makes a lot of sense. A growing number of Arizonans and people like me just don’t feel like we fit neatly into one party’s box or the other. And so, like many, across the state and the nation, I’ve decided to leave that partisan process and really just focus on the work that I think matters to Arizona and to our country, which is solving problems and getting things done.”