Biden 'profoundly disappointed' by U.S. Senate's failure to advance voting rights

[January 20, 2022]    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden is deeply disappointed by the Senate's failure to advance a voting rights bill, he said on Wednesday, but vowed to keep fighting moves by Republicans to suppress and subvert voting rights in states across the nation.

President Joe Biden holds a formal news conference in the East Room of the White House, in Washington, D.C., U.S., January 19, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Biden said the legislation was needed after last year's assault on the Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump and efforts by Republican state legislatures to suppress "the sacred right to vote and subvert the American bedrock of free and fair elections."

In a statement after Senate Republicans blocked Democrats' move to advance the voting rights legislation toward passage in back-to-back votes, Biden added:

"My administration will never stop fighting to ensure that the heart and soul of our democracy — the right to vote — is protected at all costs."

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

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