U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona) announced Aug. 4 that she will “move forward” with Democrats’ massive climate, prescription drug and spending bill, after fellow party members appeared to reach an agreement about her concerns with the legislation, NPR reported.
Sinema’s approval basically locks in the bill for Democrats, who need all 50 Democratic votes on board in order for the bill to pass, with a tie-breaker vote from Vice President Kamala Harris.
In recent days, Sinema had expressed concern over the portion of the bill about narrowing the carried interest tax loophole. Democrats say the measure would have added about $14 billion in funding.
Sinema and fellow Sen. Joe Manchin have been seen as constant Democratic holdouts for some time, with Sinema, who’s bisexual, also being criticized by the LGBTQ+ community. Last year, an NBC News op-ed (written by bi journalist Lux Alptraum) even asked, “Is Arizona’s Kyrsten Sinema bad for bisexual Americans?” Alptraum wrote, “No longer a bi icon, she’s now held up as a cautionary tale about the limits of representation,” but added, “Maybe Sinema will inspire a new wave of openly bisexual politicians, simply out of a desperation to prove that Kyrsten Sinema is not an accurate representation of all bisexuals.”