Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) defended the filibuster during a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday and high-fived fellow filibuster-phile Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV).
Sinema, who left the Democratic Party in December, has long drawn heat from the liberal wing of the party over her centrism and her advocacy for the filibuster, an arcane rule that allows a minority of 41 senators to block legislation.
“This is not healthy for democracy,” Sinema said about fighting between Democrats and Republicans at the forum in Switzerland. “So, I think that this is an opportunity for us as a country to look back and say, ‘Is this partisanship serving us?’ I would posit to you that it’s not.”
After some additional anodyne comments about the importance of bipartisanship, Manchin, who was seated next to her, asked if she still backs the filibuster.
“And we still don’t agree on getting rid of the filibuster?” Manchin said.
“That’s correct,” she replied while reaching out her hand
Sinema defending the filibuster at Davos in front of some of the wealthiest people in the world did not sit well with liberals on Twitter. Her choice of sweater – a rather shaggy shawl of some kind – seemed to feed the progressive narrative that the senator has reached a comic book-level of villainy.