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A progressive coalition is pressuring Chuck Schumer on his own turf by launching a digital billboard in Times Square, urging the new majority leader to end the filibustering of the Senate.
Why is this important: Schumer is set for re-election in 2o22 and could face a challenger, and is also spearheading his party’s broader efforts to retain his narrow majorities in Congress.
The backdrop: Schumer and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell are currently negotiating a power-sharing deal to make the new Senate 50-50 work. The question of whether the 60-vote filibuster rule will endure is at the heart of their stalemate.
Driving the news: Just Democracy, a coalition of more than 40 progressive groups led by black and brown organizers seeking to reform the government, created and paid for a week-long billboard in the heart of the Schumer district starting Monday.
- The ad contains quotes from Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, former President Obama and former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, all condemning the filibuster. None of them work in conjunction with the organizers on the billboard.
- Note: Ocasio-Cortez, a progressive beacon, will not quell speculation that it plans to challenge Schumer for its seat.
What they say: “Democrats took control of the Senate thanks to black and brown organizers and voters,” Stasha Rhodes, campaign manager for 51 for 51 and member of the Just Democracy coalition, said in a statement to Axios. the biggest obstacle to the legislation that voters care most about – the right to vote, health care, a serious COVID bailout and more. “
- Another group, Fix Our Senate, ran a full-page ad in Sunday’s New York Times that also pushed Schumer to end the filibuster.
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