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Sen. Rand Paul Storms Out Of Committee Meeting…

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(FreedomWire.org) – Things got heated at a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing when Rand Paul of Kentucky walked out over a procedural disagreement as Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona tried to cool tempers.

“If this is the way you’re going to run the committee, I would suggest that Republicans leave. I don’t see why we should stick around if you’re going to make up the rules,” Paul demanded of Peters after a heated back and forth. Paul proceeded to walk out of the room after the exchange.

Paul took issue after Peters used secondary amendments to effectively nulify amendments he offered to the bill that reauthorizes the U.S. Fire Administration, the Assistance to Firefighters (AFG) Grants Program, and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant Program.

“I request a recorded vote,” Ranking Member Paul said. “I also have a second degree amendment and I recognize myself to offer a second degree amendment,” Committee Chairman Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) replied. “My second degree amendment would direct — “

“Point of inquiry. Point of inquiry,” Paul interrupted. “ — GAO to issue an audit of the U.S Fire Administration — “ Peters continued.

“Point of inquiry,” Paul repeated.

“ — three years of enactment to continue improving — “ Peters carried on.

“Point of inquiry,” Paul insisted.

“Yes, go ahead,” Peters replied.

“We have, what, unlimited second degree amendments?” Paul asked.

“We have a second degree amendment, I’ve recognized myself for my second degree amendment,” Peters said.

“Your second degree amendment to a second degree amendment?” Paul asked.

“No, it’s a second degree amendment is being offered to the Scott Amendment,” Peters responded.

“No, I — I already called up a second degree amendment to the Scott Amendment,” Paul commented.

“You can’t call it up, senator,” Peters replied. “Only the chair can call it up.”

“Well, I was recognized to call it up the same way we have recognized for every other amendment,” Paul answered. “You recognized me and I called it up.”

“You were recognized to call it up for a vote,” Peters objected. “I will — only a chair can do that.”

“If this is the way you’re going to run the committee, I would suggest that Republicans leave. I don’t see why we should stick around if you’re going to make up the rules,” Paul said heatedly at one point.

The procedural argument turned increasingly hostile and Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) tried to calm down the senators.

“You don’t have to escalate this to a situation where folks are walking out,” Sinema pleaded. “Now, we can just ask folks who can explain the rules to us and then we’ll follow them…”

“Who do we ask?” Paul asked. “Just the majority staff?”

“Let’s consult the folks,” Sinema said and pointed out towards the chamber. “I mean, the rules are written down. We can follow them. I don’t think that we need to escalate this to become a spectacle.”

But that’s exactly what Paul did. He gathered up his things and he walked out.

What was the argument about? Peters was using procedural tactics to keep Democrats on the committee from voting on the Republicans’ amendments to the Fire Grants and Safety Act.

According to Senator Peters’ official website, “The Fire Grants and Safety Act reauthorizes SAFER, AFG, and the USFA until 2030. It authorizes $95 million for USFA – a nearly $20 million increase from current levels, and maintains currently authorized levels of funding for the SAFER and AFG programs.”

As reported by The Hill, “Paul offered an amendment to make any fire department that terminated firefighters for refusing a COVID-19 vaccine or speaking out against the mandate ineligible for federal grants.  Under Paul’s proposal, fire departments that fired employees for refusing vaccines could become eligible for federal money by offering those individuals reinstatement and backpay.”

Peters offered second-degree amendments to the Republican-sponsored amendments that completely gutted their content.

As Paul stormed out of the room, Sinema urged senators to “take a couple minutes, lower the temperature, just figure out the procedure.”

“There’s no need for us to turn this committee hearing into a partisan, ugly place like we’ve seen in other committees,” she added.

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Sen. Kyrsten Sinema Deals Huge Blow To Democrats…

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(FreedomWire.org) – Kyrsten Sinema just dealt a massive blow to Democrats and announced she is leaving the Dem Party and registering as an independent.

“In a natural extension of my service since I was first elected to Congress, I have joined the growing numbers of Arizonans who reject party politics by declaring my independence from the broken partisan system in Washington and formally registering as an Arizona Independent.

“Over the past four years, I’ve worked proudly with other Senators in both parties and forged consensus on successful laws helping everyday Arizonans build better lives for themselves and their families. Becoming an Independent won’t change my work in the Senate; my service to Arizona remains the same.”

In the Arizona Republic, Sinema wrote:

“Arizonans expect our leaders to follow that example – set aside political games, work together, make progress and then get out of the way so we can build better lives for ourselves and our families.

It’s no surprise that Washington, D.C., often fails to reflect that expectation. 

Everyday Americans are increasingly left behind by national parties’ rigid partisanship, which has hardened in recent years.

Pressures in both parties pull leaders to the edges, allowing the loudest, most extreme voices to determine their respective parties’ priorities and expecting the rest of us to fall in line. 

In catering to the fringes, neither party has demonstrated much tolerance for diversity of thought. Bipartisan compromise is seen as a rarely acceptable last resort, rather than the best way to achieve lasting progress. Payback against the opposition party has replaced thoughtful legislating.

Americans are told that we have only two choices – Democrat or Republican – and that we must subscribe wholesale to policy views the parties hold, views that have been pulled further and further toward the extremes. 

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Sinema Stands Her Ground And Infuriates Dems…

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(FreedomWire.org) – Arizona Democrat Sen. Kyrsten Sinema is not backing down on her support of the Senate filibuster and it’s not sitting well with Democrats. The well-known Democrat said she supports keeping the filibuster because it “protects the democracy of our nation.”

“As folks in Arizona know, I’ve long been a supporter of the filibuster because it is a tool that protects the democracy of our nation, rather than allowing our country to ricochet wildly every two to four years back and forth between policies,” Sinema said.

“The idea of the filibuster was created by those who came before us in the United States Senate to create comity and to encourage senators to find bipartisanship and work together. And while there are some who don’t believe that bipartisanship is possible, I think that I’m a daily example that bipartisanship is possible, not just this trip today and tomorrow that John and I are doing, but the work that John and I, and I and many other of my colleagues in both parties do on a regular basis,” she continued.

She added: “So to those who say we must make a choice between the filibuster and x, I say this is a false choice. The reality is, is that when you have a system that’s not working effectively, and I would think that most would agree that the Senate is not a particularly well-oiled machine, right, the way to fix that is to change your behavior, not to eliminate the rules or change the rules, but to change your behavior. So I’m going to continue to go to work every day, aggressively seeking bipartisanship in a cheerful and happy warrior way as I always do, and showing that when we work together we can get things done.”

“The filibuster was not created as a tool to accomplish one thing or another. It was created as a tool to bring together members of different parties to find compromise and a coalition,” Sinema said.

“And you think about our Founding Fathers when they created the Senate with two senators from every state regardless of population size, with elections staggered every six years so that only a third of the body is up for election each cycle, it was designed to be a place where you cool the passions of the House. We work together to find a compromise, and importantly, where you protect the rights of the minority from the majority regardless of which party is in the majority at the time,” she added.

The Senate filibuster is a rule that requires 60 members to end debate on most topics and move to a vote.

Sinema’s defiance has angered Democrats.

Last week, Arizona Democrat Rep. Ruben Gallego went after Sinema and West Virginia Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin for teaming up with Republicans on key bills, which stopped and slowed down President Joe Biden’s legislative agenda from crossing the finish line.

Gallego has been especially critical of Sinema’s refusal to end the Senate’s legislative filibuster.

Gallego tweeted earlier this year that Sinema and Manchin “care more about arcane Senate rules than protecting your vote.” And in June, he said that Sinema was empowering Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) by “not neutering the filibuster.”

MSN published a report detailing how Sinema may face a tough re-election in 2024 because of her support for the filibuster, which may result in some Democrats not supporting her on the campaign trail.

“Like Manchin, Sinema has angered many within her party and could face a serious primary challenge. Republicans will also likely view the state as a top pickup opportunity. Sinema has defended keeping the filibuster in place and has leveraged her party’s slim 50-50 Senate majority to notch concessions, including a deal she negotiated with Schumer earlier this summer that eliminated a carried interest loophole from Democrats’ climate and health care spending package,” MSN reported.

“That’s left some senators like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) expressing openness to endorsing primary challengers to Sinema and Manchin. Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) has said he’s been approached about challenging the Arizona centrist and has been openly critical of Sinema but has not committed to mounting a bid. Republicans, smarting from losses in the state in 2020 and 2022, are also eyeing the seat closely,” the outlet added.

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