The Constant Idiocy of Kyrsten Sinema
No Maverick, she's an Arizona Nincompoop
Senator Kyrsten Synema addresses a panel at Davos this week.
There are two Senators who Democrats view as potentially sinking any legislation they try and push. You might say they are the most “indepenent-minded” Senators in that august body. I’m not even referring to the two currently longest serving Independents in the Senate, Bernie Sanders and Angus King, two New England legislators who caucus with Dems and just choose not to label themselves as such in name only (Sanders because he is a devout Socialist, King because Maine is a more moderate state and political pragmatism being an Independent helps him).
No, the two most independent Senators are Joe Manchin from West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema from Arizona.
Joe Manchin, I get. He comes from a state that used to be solidly Democratic but over the last 30 years has taken a decidedly dark red shift. While Manchin has steadfastly maintained his party identification, he has swayed to the right as a matter of political survival. When liberal-authored bills come up, he has a tendency to waver, shave off some of the bottom line, and eventually fall in line. This usually has the result of being a win for him, the Democrats and the Biden Administration, not to mention the American people who get a better overall bill since its gone through a more vetted process. The drop off between a moderate Joe Manchin and whatever far right MAGA Republican would get elected to the Senate from West Virginia is an exceptionally steep one. Democrats are lucky to have someone from this state in their caucus. Since Manchin is up for election in 2024, they may not have it much longer. That would be a shame; few Senators represent their states’ interests over party more often or better than Manchin does West Virginia.
Sinema on the other hand is clueless. She votes against packages just for the sake of voting against them. There’s no rhyme or reason to it; she just does it because she can.
When voting on a bill for a $15 minimum wage, a solid plank within the Democrats’ legislative platform, Sinema did this:
Aside from just voting against the popular Democratic measure, she specifically made it a point to go up to the rostrum, do a little knee buckle/ hip swivel like some sassy teenager, and give a performative thumbs down, with nobody but the C-Span cameras and clerks there. Why? Who knows.
To be sure, Arizona has a long history of supporting those who buck their party. Long time Senator John McCain received accolades when he would spurn the party from time to time. Probably his greatest moment came in 2017 when Republicans tried to repeal Obamacare, the major program advocated by the man he lost to for President, and McCain just days after cancer treatment made it to the floor for the vote. Contrast this scene (note the gasps and muted applause on the floor), on a major piece of legislation, that would remove health care from millions if passed, with Sinema’s sideshow above:
Jeff Flake, Sinema’s predecessor in the Senate was at odds with the GOP’s pro-Trump tilt after 2016. Despite being Republican and voting with the party on major bills, when it came to Trump and many of the things he advocated, Flake was not shy of saying when a line was crossed and how.
Even current Democratic Senator Mark Kelly doesn’t toe the Democratic party line on every issue. When it comes to border security and immigration he has tended to be against many of the Democrats’ positions and is vocal about it.
So Sinema’s apostasy wouldn’t be so odd if there was a level of practicality to it. However, other than constantly supporting hedge funds, she doesn’t demonstrate an adherence to principle on anything in particular. Any issue position can be swayed, bent or flat our broken. She also has a tendency not to object to anything in a bill until everything else had already been negotiated and the other votes already attained. She could make it easier on everyone if she just contributed to the process while the bill was being crafted, letting them know of what she won’t approve, but she chooses not to and then wants to be courted after everything else is over. It’s like sitting there while everyone else chooses whats for dinner, they all cook it and spend all this time making it, and then she goes, “Nah, we should order pizza instead.”
To undestand a little about why (really, is there a reason why? I digress), it may help to look at her history.
Sinema’s Political History
Sinema began her career as a member of the Green Party.1 The Greens were largely seen as much more liberal than the typical Democrat, and repeatedly nominated Ralph Nader for President, of which Sinema worked on his campaign.2 She rose to prominence advocating for more liberal causes uring the early 2000s, when the Democrats tacked right during the War on Terror. She called herself, "a Prada Socialist."3 In 2003, she protested against Joe Lieberman's campaign for President saying, " "He's a shame to Democrats. I don't even know why he's running. He seems to want to get Republicans voting for him – what kind of strategy is that?"
In 2004, she joined the Democratic Party and was elected to the Arizona State Legislature. In 2006, she told a radio station she was the most liberal member of the legislature that year. In 2012, she ran in and fought a bitterly divided contest for Arizona’s 9th Congressional District. She eked out a close victory, and was re-elected to the seat several times.
In 2018, with Arizona Republican (and Trump critic) Jeff Flake retiring, Sinema saw an opportunity. She threw her hat in the ring and began campaigning as a moderate. She avowed to vote against Chuck Schumer as Majority Leader, would not specify how she would vote on the Kavanaugh nomination, and avoided controversial topics altogether (including Trump). In November, during a very anti-Trump blue wave landslide year, she defeated Trump supporter Martha McSally for the Senate seat.
Following years in which she had bewildered her colleagues on position after position, she left the Democratic Party in December 2022 and registered as an independent. She still caucuses with them though for committee assignments.
So bouncing around from Green Party liberal, to moderate Senator dissing the Democratic Party to Independent complaining about parties altogether are actually all relatively consistent, insofar as it’s a sign of political expediency and lacking any coherent ideology. It’s not similar in the way Manchin does, looking at how something impacts his state or re-election and adjusting his position on it accordingly, while still maintaining his allegiance to the party and their goals. It’s more akin to a selfish amateur who has no interest in representing those who elected her, no interest in working with colleagues to craft and pass important legislation, and no interest in doing what’s best for anyone else but Kyrsten Sinema.
Sinema’s Approval and Likely Future
Kyrsten Sinema is not well liked. Not by the Democrats she’s kicked in the shins again and again. Not by the Republicans who would rather elect anyone else. Not really by independents who view her as flaky.
Before leaving the Democratic party, she was viewed as one of America’s least liked Senators. In her own state, she held a 42% approval rating4, a recipe for disaster in any election. After leaving the party, it dropped to 30% approval among Democrats, and her overall disapproval ratings spiked to over 50%; when half the electorate already hates you there really is nowhere to go.
It seems quite likely that Democrats will field a new nominee for Senate in 2024 when Sinema’s term expires, likely Rep. Ruben Gallego. Republicans will also have a primary, but the frontrunner is Trump supporter and 2022 Governor candidate Kari Lake. Already liked by most of the GOP, and losing a very close race that went extra weeks of counting, she seems sure to put up good numbers for the Republicans. Which leaves Sinema in an atypical Independent wasteland, staking out a place overlapping with the Arizona Democratic Party but not being a Democrat. She could try to appeal to her old Green Party roots, but that seems doubtful and would most likely lead to general election defeat. Or she could try and play the moderate, but she’s been so flippant about it even independents don’t really trust her.5 Playing the moderate also requires her pulling GOP and Dem votes away from their candidates, something that is unlikely to happen. It seems Sinema seems intent on playing chicken with the Democratic Party as to whether they support her trying to keep the seat or she completely pulls the plug on any chances they have.
That’s no surprise, seeing how that’s also her modus operendi as Senator. In her own words, modified only for gender pronouns, “[S]he's a shame to Democrats. I don't even know why [s]he's running. [S]he seems to want to get Republicans voting for [her] – what kind of strategy is that?"
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Just to give you an idea of how flaky Sinema is, here is a story about the 37(!) page guide for staffing her.
It should also go without saying that for a US elected Senator facing election in two years to be hobnobbing in Davos with CEOs and hedge fund billionaires is not exactly a look you want to have, particularly looking like Cruella DeVille.
But this one, I don’t get. There’s Sinema, there’s Speaker Paul Ryan, what’s with Scaramucci?
Her Campaign Consultants just left her as well.
All in all, not the kind of image you want in an elected official. Ever.
PurpleAmerica’s Obscure Fact of the Day
On November 17, 2013, Sinema completed an Ironman Triathlon in a little over 15 hours. She was the second active member of Congress, after Senator Jeff Merkley, to finish a long-distance triathlon, and the first to complete an Ironman-branded race. She completed the 2015 Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii.
Regardless of what you think of her as a person or as a Senator, that’s still pretty impressive.
For those who don’t know, an Ironman Triathlon is a 2.4 mile swim, followed by a 112 mile bike ride, and then running a full marathon (26.2 miles) after that. The current Ironman Hawaii course record was set in 2022 by Gustav Iden (Norway), whose winning time was 7 hours 40 minutes 24 seconds. Daniela Ryf (Switzerland) set the women's course record in 2018 with a winning time of 8 hours 26 minutes 18 seconds. According to RunTri's analysis of more than 41,000 finishers in 25 Ironman triathlons, the average Ironman time is 12 hours and 35 minutes. This breaks down to the average segments times as follows: 2.4-mile Swim: 1:16; 112-mile Bike: 6:25; and 26.2-mile Run: 4:54.
PurpleAmerica Cultural Criticism Corner
I’m a big fan of the show Reservation Dogs. Quite simply, its the best coming of age show ever. Its funny, tragic, thoughtful, and smart. It takes place largely on a Reservation in Oklahoma and the writers all are indiginous (along with the actors and crew), writing about their lives growing up. If you haven’t seen it, you can binge it on Hulu.
This scene, taken episode 8 of season 2, may be the single best thing I’ve seen on television since Breaking Bad first aired.
Parting Thoughts
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When I was in undergrad studying Political Science, I had a professor who referred to people in third paries as “people who think they’re too cool for major parties or flat out rejected by them.” Years of being around politics has only solidified this idea; they could be more productive and get things done by working within the two party system, but choose not to because they hate the labels those parties are branded with.
Ralph Nader was largely seen as costing Al Gore the White House in the 2000 election (among other reasons), as the vote count he got in Florida (and other states) far outnumbered Gore’s margin of defeat. Gore, a noted centrist, had chosen the more Conservative Joe Lieberman as VP candidate, opening up a challenge to his left, filled by Nader.
As if that makes any sense.
Morning Consult Poll, Dec 9-31, 2022.
Ibid, where Independents only give her 40% approval.