CNN "The Lead with Jake Tapper" - Transcript: Interview with Richard Blumenthal

Interview

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SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): It is symbolic, but it is a powerful symbol of the White House's engagement and the importance of this vote. It's only an opening round, as you well know. It's a vote to move forward and debate that is just talk about the bill.

The Republicans are going to be unanimous in shutting down the debate, but it is profoundly important to access to the ballot, overcoming restrictions that state legislatures are imposing and ending the corruption of our present campaign finance system. And that's why her presence is going to be really important.

TAPPER: Well, Senator, if you know that it's going to fail, why put it up for a vote? Why not work to find ten Republicans who will vote for something and get something passed as opposed to putting up a bill that you know is doomed?

BLUMENTHAL: That's exactly what we are going to do, but we're giving them the first choice about whether to support this bill, which is our best option, Senator Manchin has proposed another version, which I would support. It has the essentials here and we'll move forward with that one, and then the conversation will continue.

But, make no mistake, Jake, we are by no means done at the end of today. It is just the beginning. And the American people should understand what's at stake here -- truly is preserving the right to vote and stopping billionaires literally from buying elections. And we are in no way going to abandon this fight.

TAPPER: Well -- I mean, Democrats control the White House, they control the House, they control the Senate. I mean, what are you talking about preventing billionaires from controlling politics? I mean, you guys control everything right now.

BLUMENTHAL: We may have an evenly divided Senate and control because the vice president can break a tie. But the filibuster rules, as the American people are beginning to understand, require us to have 60 votes just to proceed to debate, just to talk about the bill.

[16:10:07]

And that's why a lot of us, including many of our leaders, believe that we should tremendously modify the filibuster. I'm in favor of abolishing it, but in the meantime, we can mobilize support among the American people to understand that dark money, the money that goes to elections without disclosure is determining the outcomes. And that's what we need disclosure to shine a light on. And that's why this bill is so important to end that kind of corruption.

TAPPER: Senator, haven't you voted in favor of filibustering Republican legislation, not allowing them to even proceed to a discussion, an amendment process and debate on a bill?

BLUMENTHAL: We have used the 60-vote threshold a number of times. For example --

TAPPER: But you're talking about it being corrupt, but you've used it, too. BLUMENTHAL: The dark money is corrupt. The current finance system and

its corruption is what we want to end. The filibuster is a rule that stymies majority vote. And I actually voted, I think it was my third or fourth vote in the Senate, ten years ago when I first came here to abolish the filibuster. I was one of only 12.

And in the ten years since I've seen my colleagues one by one decide that Republicans overuse, abuse, and misuse of the filibuster rule, that 60-vote threshold, has led them to conclude enough is enough. And that's why there are just a handful of Democrats left who are in favor of preserving this arcane and abhorrent rule that the Founders would have absolutely rejected.

TAPPER: So, there are a number of Democrats who are not with you on getting rid of the filibuster. It's not just Senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, but they are probably the most prominent.

Senator Sinema wrote in a new op-ed, quote: The filibuster compels moderation and helps protect the country from wild swings between opposing policy poles. To those who want to eliminate the legislative filibuster to pass the For the People Act, I would ask, would it be good for our country if we did only to see that legislation rescinded a few years from now and replaced, unquote.

Does she not have a point? The 60-vote threshold is there to encourage compromise. And Democrats could very well be in the minority again very soon.

BLUMENTHAL: There are two points there, Jake. And both of them are excellent to raise. Number one, yes, democracy could, if the majority in a few years or a decade or so from now requires a different vote on policy, reverse or modify healthcare policy or immigration policy, that's democracy, majority vote.

And, yes, the filibuster is sometimes understood to promote compromise, but actually it inhibits compromise because in order to reach a solution -- let's say on voting rights -- you need 10 Republicans, not just one or two, but 10 of them, which is a high threshold. So, actually, it works against compromise.

And my hope is that Senator Sinema and Senator Manchin like many of my colleagues, I've seen them one by one over these 10 years, come around to my point of view, we need to abolish or radically reform the filibuster because it inhibits democracy, that they will reach that same conclusion, and move forward on voting rights.

And, remember, we're talking here about a core right. It's not just a matter of policy. It's not just another bill.

It goes to the core of people's access to democracy, polling places and polling hours, limited. The rights of access to absentee ballots and mail-in ballots, restricted. Gerrymandering, promoted. Dark money, enabled.

We're talking about essential democratic rights here. And I'm really hopeful that my two colleagues and others who may still have reservations about radically reforming or abolishing the filibuster will come around to a point of view this time is really different.

TAPPER: Democratic Senator Blumenthal of Connecticut, thanks so much for your time today, sir. We appreciate it.

BLUMENTHAL: Thank you.

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