The Filibuster And The Myth Of Radical Reversals

Think of the filibuster as a check valve that only goes one way. To the right.

I can recall the days of Trump. I distinctly recall Trump calling for the end of the filibuster. Then Senate Leader Mitch McConnell refused to consider the notion, much less put it to a vote. Former President Donald Trump (the former guy), one of the most popular politicians in history, could not get the Senate to reverse course on the filibuster. There must be something very important about the filibuster, so important that it must not ever be removed.

I’ve read up on the history of the filibuster. I’ve found devoted scholars who said that the filibuster is illegal. That the filibuster was created by a mistake of process in the Senate. I’ve also read that the filibuster was originally intended to extend debate. It’s not extending debate anymore. During Trump’s term, there were 400 bills from the House that could not even get a vote for debate on the floor of the Senate. Yeah. That’s the power of the modern filibuster.

Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) disagrees with any notion that we should eliminate or modify the filibuster. The same story, with the same quotes, has been reported by The Hill and Politico. What does she say? Well, her spokesperson said that Sinema ”continues to…