Biden on voting rights passage: 'I'm tired of being quiet!'
CTV
U.S. President Joe Biden says that he supports changing Senate rules in order to pass voting rights legislation, declaring that changing the rules would be to protect the 'heart and soul of our democracy.'
Biden told a crowd in Atlanta that he'd been having quiet conversations with senators for months over the two bills - a lack of progress that has brought his criticism from activists in his own party.
“I'm tired of being quiet!” he shouted. “I will not yield. I will not flinch.”
Current rules require 60 votes to advance most legislation - a threshold that Senate Democrats can't meet alone because they only have a 50-50 majority with Vice President Kamala Harris to break ties. Republicans unanimously oppose the voting rights measures.
Not all Democrats are on board with changing the filibuster rules. Conservative West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin threw cold water on the idea Tuesday, saying he believes any changes should be made with substantial Republican buy-in.
