Politico reports:

Watch the Senate floor enough and you’ll notice Sen. Kyrsten Sinema regularly chatting with Mitch McConnell and his top deputy John Thune. Republicans have even tried to recruit her to their conference, and throw the Senate to the GOP.

Don’t worry though, Democrats: Sinema’s not becoming a Republican.

“No. Why would I do that?” the moderate Arizonan says in her trademark deadpan.

Thune, the GOP whip, wishes it were otherwise, confirming in an interview he’s pressed Sinema to join his party multiple times. But Sinema’s goal in an evenly split Senate isn’t to toss away Democrats’ majority, despite enduring months of criticism from progressives on her policy positions, rock-solid protection of the filibuster and yes, even her fashion choices.

Instead, Sinema seems to take most of it in stride, feeling justified in her approach after President Joe Biden signed her hard-fought bipartisan infrastructure bill on Monday. As she sought to cut deals with Republicans and shave down Biden’s party-line spending bill, she’s largely stayed mum no matter what her own party throws at her. Sinema wouldn’t respond to liberals who panned her bipartisan negotiations, just as she won’t discuss ongoing work on Biden’s companion bill focusing on climate and social spending.

Yet when she does decide to speak, she has plenty to say. As Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer constantly preaches unity in a 50-50 Senate, Sinema says her differences with other Democrats are natural and they shouldn’t paper over them. [Continue reading…]