CHICAGO – A statement of confidence Vice President Kamala Harris and Democrats will win the 2024 election, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he expects changes to the 60-vote filibuster rule to pass several key bills that would expand voting rights across the country.
Schumer showed a way for Democrats to change the Senate rules Requires holding 50 Out of 51 places. The party expects Sen. Joe Manchin to lose his seat in West Virginia, but Sen. John Tester, D-Mont. and Rep. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio. In addition to meeting with Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., he hopes to protect incumbents. , replacing independent Sen. Kyrsten Sineman.
Manchin and Sinema, who both retired stopped on his way Democrats seeking to change the filibuster in 2022, which requires a supermajority or 50 senators and the tie-breaking vice president. But this dynamic may change next year.
“We got to 48, but of course Sinema and Manchin voted no; so we couldn’t change the rules. Well, they’re both gone,” Schumer told reporters here Tuesday during the week of the Democratic convention. “Ruben Gallego is for it and we have 51. So even if we lose Mancini, we still have 50.”
Schumer is known for his two-year bullish predictions ahead of the election, and he praised Harris as a “terrific candidate” and predicted a Democratic primary that would require Senate incumbents to win red-leaning states and purple battlegrounds. He added: “I’m not predicting it, but Donald Trump has more to lose than people think by helping us in the Senate and the House.”
At a separate Politico event on Monday, Schumer said the two bills he would try to pass under the rule change were the Voting Freedom Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. He called the two measures “very, very important” and predicted “there will be consensus in my caucus to try to do this.”
Schumer said Tuesday that Democrats have similarly faced Republican opposition and failed to get 60 votes in the Senate over Roe v. They will also discuss potential rule changes to codify abortion rights in federal law, a bipartisan priority after Wade’s repeal.
“I have to discuss it with my members,” Schumer said. “It’s one of those things that we need to discuss, discuss and develop.” He noted that Democrats had just 35 votes for two ballot changes in 2022, up from 48.
“We want to protect the choice. We have to see how we can do that,” Schumer continued.
Schumer also negotiated key pieces of legislation through the 50-vote budget reconciliation process next year, including plans for investments in housing, clean energy, an expanded child tax credit and tax increases for high earners.
“In terms of frustration, we believe we need to do something about housing,” Schumer said. “It’s not just in urban areas like New York City, it’s in rural areas as well. They are desperate for housing.” He said Harris’ idea of a $25,000 subsidy for first-time home buyers was a “great proposal.” He said he would seek to build on clean energy plans to cut carbon emissions by 40% by 2030 and “go to zero by 2050.” And he said the child tax credit should be “deeper and longer”.
Schumer unveiled a series of fast-tracked tax proposals in the budget process, saying he expects to raise the corporate rate and raise the top individual tax rate to 39%, promising to “pay the wealthy their fair share.” make it a priority. He said repealing the taxes “is something I would consider very seriously,” advice both endorsed by former President Donald Trump and Harris.
The Democratic Senate leader endorsed Harris’ pledge not to raise taxes on people making less than $400,000.
One of the key parts of the 2017 Trump tax cuts, which expire at the end of 2025, is the $10,000 limit on federal deductions for state and local taxes. Schumer, a staunch supporter of the “SALT” discount, said that the limit will expire and reset to an unlimited amount during his tenure in the Senate.
“As long as I’m leader, when the state and local exemptions expire, it’s going to go away — the cap,” Schumer told reporters.