Senate Dems vote against debate on GOP police bill

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy, DConn., voted with Senate Democrats against opening debate on the GOP policing bill Wednesday in an attempt to force Republicans into new negotiations to craft a bipartisan solution.

There’s some common ground between the Republican bill and Democrats’ own proposal, but rather than amend the GOP bill, Democrats are seeking to push Senate Republicans toward more aggressive changes, making a gamble that they will either succeed now or after the 2020 election. Democrats now favor a Senate committee debate on policing bills to produce a new bipartisan product.

“There’s clearly a powerful feeling among Americans that this moment must be met with serious action, not just lip service,” Blumenthal said in an interview after the vote. “Real change is not what the Republican bill does.”

But Republicans are clear that they view the Democrats’ tactics as obstructionism. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., who crafted the Republican bill said he offered Democrats 20 amendments on his bill to make the changes they wanted, but Democrats refused.

“Today through the rest of June and all of July, instead of gaining 70 percent of what you wanted or more, you’re going to get zero,” Scott said, visibly frustrated after the vote. “Why wouldn’t you take the 80 percent now, see if you can win the election and then add on the other 20 percent? You’ve got to be kidding.”

Blumenthal said Democrats never received a “commitment” from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to engage on amendments.

“Mitch McConnell just chose to give us a take it or leave it vote without any commitment to amendments,” Blumenthal retorted. “He knows how to do a bill if he’s serious about it, and he knows how to do a charade, which is what he did here.”

Following roughly a month of national protests against racism and police brutality, the vote was the first real test of Congress’s ability to act on the entrenched problems. Democrats strategized for roughly a week ahead of the Senate vote.

The final vote was 55 to 45 with Sens. Doug Jones, D-Al., Joe Manchin, D-W.V., and Angus King, I-Maine, voting yes with Republicans, while McConnell voted no for procedural reasons. Sixty yes votes were needed to launch debate.

Crafted by Scott, the only Black Republican senator, the Republican legislation uses federal funds to encourage changes in training, penalize departments that don’t use body cameras and discourage use of chokeholds, among other measures.

Democrats lambasted the GOP proposal as woefully inadequate, while acknowledging that the reforms they seek may have to wait.