Sinema pushes back on criticism of her vote against $15 minimum wage, implying that it's sexist

Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s (Ariz.) office is pushing back against criticism of her Friday vote to reject a $15 minimum wage bill, with a spokesperson for the senator calling commentary on the way in which she cast her vote sexist.

Sinema was among eight Democrats who voted against the legislation, which was sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) in an effort to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour.

The Senate voted 58 to 42 against an attempt to waive a procedural objection against adding the wage provision to the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill, which the Senate narrowly passed along party lines Saturday.

Fellow Democratic lawmakers and others took to Twitter to condemn Sinema’s vote, with Rep. Marie Newman (D-Ill.) retweeting a 2014 tweet from Sinema in which she wrote, “A full-time minimum-wage earner makes less than $16k a year. This one’s a no-brainer. Tell Congress to #RaiseTheWage!”

“To be clear, her state, Arizona overwhelmingly wants &15/hr,” Newman tweeted Friday evening.

To be clear, her state, Arizona overwhelmingly wants &15/hr. https://t.co/knKM2T17J5

— Marie Newman (@Marie4Congress) March 6, 2021

However, others commented on the way in which Sinema cast her vote.

The Arizona senator walked up to the floor of the Senate and gave a thumbs down, the common signal used by lawmakers to vote in opposition to a bill, while a thumbs up indicates support.

Some Twitter users focused specifically on Sinema’s mannerisms, such as how she nodded her head down, dipped her shoulders and bent her knee before standing back up and walking away.

Others also focused on her clothes and handbag, claiming it indicated that the moderate Democrat was out of touch with Americans who support an increased wage.

Did Sinema really have vote against a $15 mi... (Read more)

Tweets mentioned:

https://twitter.com/Marie4Congress/status/1368049900592762880

https://twitter.com/SawyerHackett/status/1367917179656617986

https://twitter.com/HannahLHurley/status/1368037118262542336

https://twitter.com/SenatorSinema/status/1367875779258949636

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