Democrats are wasting their own time and credibility on voting rights

Chuck Schumer.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Getty Images, iStock)

Democrats are bringing the For the People Act up for a vote in the Senate this week. Frankly it's a huge waste of time.

We already know the act, a grab bag of voting rights provisions, will fail. It won't get the 60 votes needed to overcome a Republican filibuster, and — since it lacks the support of Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) — it won't even get the 50 votes to achieve a bare majority. The bill is dead on arrival, and all the activity surrounding its arrival on the Senate floor is just so much showmanship.

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Joel Mathis, The Week US

Joel Mathis is a freelance writer who has spent nine years as a syndicated columnist, co-writing the RedBlueAmerica column as the liberal half of a point-counterpoint duo. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic, The Kansas City Star and Heatmap News. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.