1. United States
2. S.C.
3. Letter

I’m reaching out to you today to ask you to vote NO on any further votes to overrule the Senate Parliamentarian, or votes to waive Byrd rules. I am disappointed to hear you voted to skirt the Parliamentarian last week to overturn California EPA waivers, as this weakens the filibuster and Senate norms that restrain the power of the majority. I think you may regret this decision when Democrats return to power and use the same techniques, so you need to consider very carefully whether you choose to further overturn the Parliamentarian and the filibuster in future votes regarding the budget reconciliation bill. Particularly, many people in the trans community are highly concerned about the provisions targeting care for trans people on Medicaid or ACA plans. This is a provision that would be deadly for many trans people. In addition, the provisions are policy-focused, rather than budget focused, and thus clearly violate subsection 313(b)(1)(D) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, also known as the Byrd rule. You should be well aware that all budgetary provisions must be focused on the budget, and the impact of a provision on the budget cannot be “merely incidental.” And you should commit to me in writing that you will NOT vote to overrule the parliamentarian if she rules against the GOP on this or any other provision.