Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona is quickly headed to a very dark place as she flits around Washington with "secret spreadsheets" leaving a trail of bewilderment among people who should be her political allies.
By all accounts but her own, Sinema has left Democratic leaders in the dark as they scramble to broker a deal on a multi-trillion investment in America's future that could be their last best chance to reshape public policy for a decade or more. The Build Back Better bill, which House Speaker Nancy Pelosi framed Thursday as the "culmination" of her career, holds the key to President Joe Biden's legacy along with Democrats' ability to keep their slim majorities in next year's midterms.
Yet on Friday—amid a frenzy of Democratic activity—she reportedly skips town?
It's precisely the type of antic that has earned her the ire of her colleagues and Arizona Democrats alike.
On Thursday, after Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia revealed that he had offered $1.5 trillion as a topline number for the Democrats-only bill, a progressive member of the House welcomed the clarity and chided Sinema's lack thereof.
“Half of Manchinema has now shown us something. Waiting for the other half to show us something other than a designer purse,” quipped Rep. Mark Pocan of Wisconsin.
White House aides actually huddled with Sinema this week at least four times in two days—not exactly the sign of someone being clear about their priorities with their negotiating partners.
In a testy exchange with Capitol Hill reporters, Sinema mocked the concerns of her liberal Democratic counterparts with a dash of adolescent Mean Girls flare.
Asked what she would say to progressives who are "frustrated they don’t know where you are," Sinema responded, "I’m in the Senate.”
The reporter offered, "There are progressives in the Senate that are also frustrated they don’t know where you are either."
Sinema offered, “I’m clearly right in front of the elevator.”
But if things have soured in Washington for Sinema, they are practically rancid back home.
The Senator's Phoenix offices are now home to regular protests by progressive voters who feel betrayed by Sinema, a former social worker and erstwhile Green Party activist.
“It really feels like she does not care about her voters,” Jade Duran, 33, told The New York Times. Duran, who knocked doors for Sinema in 2018, sat for arrest at a July protest targeting Sinema. “I will never vote for her again,” she said.
This week alone, liberal activists and donors launched several efforts to deliver a primary to Sinema, whose seat is up in 2024. No time like the present. Recent polls have found Sinema's approval ratings sagging among Democrats, in some cases to disastrous levels.