Kyrsten Sinema Continues to Threaten $3.5 Trillion Reconciliation Package amid House Turmoil

Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s (D-AZ) office stated Monday that because of its massive expense of $3.5 trillion, the senator still opposes the Trojan horse reconciliation budget package percolating in the House.

While she supports the $550 billion “bipartisan” infrastructure bill as “a historic win for our nation’s everyday families and employers and, like every proposal,” Sinema believes the bipartisan bill “should be considered on its own merits,” Sinema spokesperson John LaBombard said regarding House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) scheme of tying the Trojan horse package to the bipartisan deal:

Sinema’s statement supports the moderate House Democrats who have demanded Pelosi hold an immediate vote on the single bipartisan bill, untying it from the reconciliation budget package.

Such a voting sequence may risk the budget resolution success, which is presumably why Pelosi is attempting to package the measures together in a single vote. But no matter the outcome of the two bills in the House, Sinema also made it clear the “proceedings” in the House will “have no impact” on her support of the $3.5 trillion measure if it returns to the Senate for approval.

“Proceedings in the U.S. House will have no impact on Kyrsten’s views about what is best for our country – including the fact that she will not support a budget reconciliation bill that costs $3.5 trillion,” spokesman LaBombard said.

Sinema’s position comes as President Joe Biden will reportedly call Democrat House members Monday to convince them to go along with Pelosi’s packaged scheme:

“We expect to see the president personally get involved today by calling Democratic lawmakers, according to sources,” Punchbowl News reported on the infrastructure battle, which the administration is desperate to win in the wake of high crime, inflation, border crossings, and now, the deadly Afghan evacuation.

Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø.