Kyrsten Sinema Will Forever Be Remembered for Fucking People Over

Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, the self-important pain in the ass who left the Democratic party in December 2022, announced on Tuesday that she will not run for a second term as she faces a strong challenge from Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.). And it begs the question, what was the point of her running in the first place?

Sinema was elected to the Senate in 2018 and will likely remain most famous for parading around in the loudest, tackiest clothes imaginable, doing a sassy hip-pop while voting to block an increase to the unlivable federal minimum wage, and generally fucking over Americans for no conceivable reason. In a video announcing her retirement, she chose to gaslight voters about her record. “Because I choose civility, understanding, listening, working together to get stuff done, I will leave the Senate at the end of this year.”

A message for Arizonans from Senator Kyrsten Sinema pic.twitter.com/1XWFSWgGdh

— Kyrsten Sinema (@SenatorSinema) March 5, 2024

Sinema does not get stuff done, she famously blocks progress, and, for that, voters turned on her. Here’s how NBC News characterized her record:

Sinema was a pivotal vote during Biden’s first two years in the 50-50 Senate, using her clout to shape his signature Inflation Reduction Act and single-handedly nix provisions she opposed, like tax rate increases on corporations and the wealthy, and to pare back a provision aimed at lowering prescription drug prices…[she] voted to block Democratic efforts to undo the Senate filibuster to advance voting-rights legislation.

Yes, she opposed ending the Senate filibuster, that arcane 60-vote threshold to pass bills that aren’t budget-related. Then, when President Joe Biden proposed a filibuster exception just for legislation to protect abortion rights, she opposed that too. And that was after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade! (The pro-choice electoral group EMILY’s List pulled its endorsement of Sinema months before the Dobbs decision for her refusal to end the filibuster.) In early 2021, her office defended the filibuster by saying “Debate on bills should be a bipartisan process that takes into account the views of all Americans, not just those of one political party.” This thinking ignores the fact that the Senate is a deeply unrepresentative body that gives disproportionate power to conservatives. She said this at a time when, per a Guardian analysis, “Democratic senators represent nearly 40 million more voters than Republican senators—but the Senate is split 50-50.”

But no, Sinema believes she’s just smarter and more level-headed than the rest of us who want unrealistic things like bodily autonomy and not to live in an oligarchy. “Compromise is a dirty word,” she said in her little video on Tuesday. “We’ve arrived at that crossroad, and we chose anger and division. I believe in my approach, but it’s not what America wants right now.” I’m pretty sure Americans care more about how you blocked material changes to their lives, but sure.

In recent months, polls consistently showed her in last place in a three-way race between her, Gallego, and MAGA favorite Kari Lake, so it’s not terribly surprising that she’s retiring. Gallego made a classy statement upon news of Sinema’s decision: “Arizona, we are at a crossroads. Protecting abortion access, tackling housing affordability, securing our water supply, defending our democracy—all of this and more is on the line,” he said. “It’s time Democrats, Independents, and Republicans come together and reject Kari Lake and her dangerous positions.”

In the end, Sinema painted herself as a sensible budget wonk, dressed like she was on a perpetual acid trip, then blamed partisanship for her unpopularity. Perhaps the point of her Senate tenure was hiding in plain sight: She screwed over Americans struggling to make ends meet while having those same people subsidize her marathon habit and taste for luxury hotels as she was cozying up to conservative lobbyists. She may be retiring, but it’s not a stretch to imagine that she’s going to stay in Washington to make an ungodly sum at a lobbying firm and continue her legacy of zealous advocacy for corporations and rich people.

Rest in piss, Kyrsten.