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Thursday Senator Rev. Raphael Warnock spoke with SiriusXM’s Joe Madison “The Black Eagle,” and said it was “irresponsible” for senators to head into a holiday recess without making progress on voting rights.
“Listen, politicians make a lot of promises when we’re running for office, but the only thing we swore to do was to defend the Constitution,” said Warnock. “And I’m not about to leave the Senate without doing everything I can this week to make sure that we protect the democracy. And so, today is Thursday, senators are typically making their airline reservations and folks are on their way home by Thursday night. I think it’s irresponsible for us to leave this weekend without at least a clear path and agreement about how we’re going to pass voting rights.”
The senator also spoke to Madison about the SiriusXM host’s ongoing hunger strike (currently on day 39) in support of voting rights reform, and also shared his thoughts on the filibuster.
“Can we have meaningful filibuster reform? Here’s what gives me hope. We did it just last week because we felt that the economy otherwise would be imperiled in such a way that for us not to act would be irresponsible,” said Warnock. “Well, we need a strong economy, but you cannot have a strong economy that works for everybody without a strong democracy that works for everybody.”
Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock Says it’s Irresponsible for Democrats Recess Without Voting Rights Plan
SENATOR REV. RAPHAEL WARNOCK: “We must do whatever is necessary, and in this case, it is clear that if we are going to get voting rights passed and address the crisis confronting our democracy right now, Democrats will have to do it alone. And it’s irresponsible for us to do otherwise.”
JOE MADISON, HOST: “And we had Senator Kaine on who validated, or at least stated and you have validated what he said and I believe in our interview with him, he said that we gave the Republicans opportunity to amend the bill if they wanted to. Didn’t hear anything to put a new bill in place. They didn’t give us one, so they clearly have decided to cast their lot with voter suppressionists.”
SENATOR REV. RAPHAEL WARNOCK: Oh, that’s the sad truth, Joe. We are not in ordinary times and this is the fundamental problem. We cannot afford to behave as if these are ordinary times. We live in a post January 6th world where we saw a violent assault on the Capitol based upon the premise that some votes don’t matter. And we have seen now that attack spread throughout state legislatures all across the United States of America.
“Voter suppression bills introduced in some 49 states, and among the most concerning provisions are provisions like that one in my state of Georgia that would basically allow partisan politicians in the state legislature to swoop in and take over local boards of elections. It is a scary scenario under which it may not matter how many people we deliver to the polls because partisan actors are controlling the count. They are enabling themselves to do precisely what Brad Raffensperger, the Secretary of State of Georgia told Donald Trump he could not do last year. They are setting the framework to be able to do it.
“Listen, politicians make a lot of promises when we’re running for office, but the only thing we swore to do was to defend the Constitution. And I’m not about to leave the Senate without doing everything I can this week to make sure that we protect the democracy. And so, today is Thursday, senators are typically making their airline reservations and folks are on their way home by Thursday night. I think it’s irresponsible for us to leave this weekend without at least a clear path and agreement about how we’re going to pass voting rights.
Senator Warnock: Bipartisanship Is Not “Necessarily Virtuous”
SENATOR REV. RAPHAEL WARNOCK: “We do not have a responsible governing partner in the other party on the other side of the aisle. That’s just the reality. I happen to think that filibuster reform changes in the rules of the Senate, ideally should be bipartisan. The reality is they are not because the other side of the aisle has decided that their path to power is voter suppression. They cast their vote with voter suppression.
“And so the moral question facing Democrats in this moment is what do you do under those circumstances? What do you do when you have a party that denies that January 6th even happened? That it was not tourists making their way through the Capitol? What do you do when voter suppression bills are being introduced all over the state, all over the country? We’re not the ones who are talking about going nuclear. The Republican party has already gone nuclear in state legislatures all across the country.
“And the question that future generations will ask us is what did we do when our democracy was in a 911 state of emergency? What did we do to put the fire out?
JOE MADISON, HOST: “So, not to put words in your mouth, are you still hopeful? I know Reverend you’re prayerful, but are you still politically hopeful that the Democrats can work out how to deal with this filibuster question? Understanding you’re not gonna get a single vote or help from the GOP. Are you still politically hopeful and are talks still going on?”
SENATOR REV. RAPHAEL WARNOCK: “Yeah, let me be really clear. First of all, that no, sadly, we’re not going to get any help from the other side. And while we’re talking about bipartisanship, which I support and I think we should have bipartisanship. But the fact of the matter is they’ve been passing these voter suppression bills all across the country and these have not been bipartisan bills. These have been Republican bills. They didn’t ask us for our support for these bills they’re passing all across the country.
“And while I support bipartisanship, I think it’s important to remember that there’s not anything necessarily virtuous about bipartisanship. Slavery was bipartisan. Jim Crow segregation was bipartisan. Our country had a three fifth compromise, which pushed forward a punitive national unity at the expense of black people’s humanity. And so the question is, what is the right answer? And you asked me, can we move these bills forward?
“Here’s what gives me hope. Can we have meaningful filibuster reform? Here’s what gives me hope. We did it just last week because we felt that the economy otherwise would be imperiled in such a way that for us not to act would be irresponsible. Well, we need a strong economy, but you cannot have a strong economy that works for everybody without a strong democracy that works for everybody.
JOE MADISON, HOST: “See, that’s what I’m hanging my hope politically on. You just did it last week. And as I said, when I started… this is day 39, maybe the magic day may be 40. Jesus spent 40 days in the desert.
SENATOR REV. RAPHAEL WARNOCK: “Brother, I’m praying for you and for your strength. We need your voice and you keep the faith and I’m gonna keep fighting and keep praying, not just with my lips, but praying with my legs.
From:Sirius XM\Joe Madison “The Black Eagle”
