Conservative Senate Republicans are once again invoking the threat of a filibuster to finally accomplish a long cherished goal: the destruction of organized labor, starting with the United Auto Workers, not coincidentally a major source of support for the Democratic Party. And unless Harry Reid exercises his authority to require a true filibuster, making the Republicans actually stand up before the cameras and show their faces, they may very well get their wish fulfilled, despite the devastating effect this will have on our already crippled economy, despite the possibly permanent loss of several million additional jobs, and despite the overwhelming will of the American people that has repudiated Republican rule.
There are valid questions that have been raised about the constitutionality of the filibuster, and the ability of an older senate majority to bind a current senate majority. But those issues are not going to resolved today. What can be done, immediately, is to insist that the Senate enforce its existing rules, save these jobs, and prevent the destruction of the UAW.
This "virtual filibuster" is being cynically wielded as a partisan weapon by a repudiated minority to thwart the ability of the Senate to pass vital legislation, with almost no accountability.
These days, we take the ability to filibuster as a matter of course. But it has an interesting and colorful history, starting with the interesting fact that the term itself comes from the Greek word for pirate. The ability to filibuster is not provided for in the Constitution, but was established by rules adopted by both houses of Congress starting in the mid nineteenth century. Unlimited debate was abandoned in the House when it became unwieldy, and the ability to shut off debate was not established until cloture rules were adopted by the Senate in 1917, originally requiring a 2/3 super majority, and not changed to the current 3/5 super majority until the rules were again changed in 1975.
Filibusters of old meant that the minority party actually had to stand up and talk, often for marathon sessions that were made famous by Huey Long and Strom Thurmond, and by Jimmy Stewart as a fictional senator in Mr. Smith Comes to Washington. The fictinal Senator Smith's efforts were pictured as heroic, and some filibusters have in fact been used to block horrible legislation or more often, egregious judicial nominees. Used in this way, the filibuster has been a means of preventing tyrannical rule by the majority.
But in modern times, and most especially in the past two years, the Republicans have put on their pirate hats and used the filibuster to sink all majority rule. The Republicans have invoked the easy threat of a filibuster a record number of times to block virtually all legislation, paralyzing the ability to pass laws that they cannot control and take credit for. And they do it because the Democrats let them get away with it!
It has produced a numbing cycle of Washington futility: House Democrats pass a bill, but Senate Democrats, facing a filibuster by the Republican minority, fail to get the 60 votes needed to end debate. Little wonder that approval ratings of Congress stink these days.
It's possible although unlikely that the 111th Congress may again be able to change its rules to restore its effectiveness. But the existing rules do not require that the Senate Majority Leader, as the person who controls the movement of legislation, to simply capitulate at the mere threat of a filibuster when the 60 votes for cloture are not available.
The rules allow the Majority Leader to insist that those wishing to filibuster actually stand up and talk interminably, showing themselves as willing to obstruct the will of the Senate, and having to justify their reasons for doing so before the American people.
The "virtual filibuster" must end, and today -- right now -- is the time to start. The very viability of the only remaining major manufacturing part of our economy hangs in the balance. Yesterday, the House passed by a large majority (237-170) a bill to authorize emergency loans to the automakers. If the Republicans want to employ the nuclear option of utterly destroying our manufacturing base to achieve their goal of once and for all getting rid of effective organized labor, then we need to make them stand up and show their faces before the American people as the people responsible for this.
If we are going to hand out hundreds of billions of dollars of bailout money, with no accountability and no restrictions, to the largely Republican white-collar robber barons of Wall Street whose greed has destroyed our economy, while we send our blue collar workers to the soup kitchens, then let's make it clear to the American people exactly who is responsible. The Republicans absolutely depend on the fact that they are able to force their will by leaving the impression that the Democrats are complicit in this, because as it stands, the public simply spreads its disgust -- a 14% approval rating -- to everyone on Capitol Hill.
But faced with accountability, it is very likely that the Republicans will quickly back down. And setting this important precedent now and carrying it forward to the 111th Congress, we truly can end the ability of the repudiated minority to continuing blocking all legislation that they don't like, and that will include the vital reforms that President Obama will need to enact, regardless of the final number of Democratic senators.
If the big three automakers die, our manufacturing base may be dealt a fatal blow. If the UAW dies, organized labor in this country will take decades to recover, if it ever recovers at all. And without organized labor, we may face a permanent loss of our middle class, so vital to the future of our democracy.
We need to make it clear to Harry Reid that we will hold him personally responsible for not doing his job as Majority Leader. Craven capitulation is no longer acceptable. The Founding Fathers never intended that the rule of the majority to be routinely thwarted at every turn by the minority. It's time that this end -- today.
Call Harry Reid today and tell him that if the Republicans in the Senate want to kill the emergency loans to the big three American automobile manufacturers, that he must require them to stand up and actually filibuster.
NO MORE VIRTUAL FILIBUSTERS!
Senator Harry Reid
528 Hart Senate Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202-224-3542
Fax: 202-224-7327
Toll Free for Nevadans:
1-866-SEN-REID (736-7343)
Press 1 to talk with a staff person when you call
send e-mail
(Phone calls are generally considered to be much more effective than e-mails)
I called this morning and spoke with a very pleasant staff person who promised to pass along my message. If his office gets tens of thousands of calls today, that will really send a message. If you agree, let's spread the word. I'm hoping that Kossacks will see this as with the same level of urgency that I do, and will perhaps put this on the Rec list. Let's really accomplish this. The stakes are unbelievably high, and time is of the essence.
FINAL UPDATE: The cloture vote, of course, failed. Harry Reid once again allowed the Republicans to use the virtual filibuster to determine the outcome. Even with the lame duck Senate and three Demublicans voting with the Southern union busters (Reid's "No" was a fourth, but this was procedural), this bill WOULD HAVE PASSED IF THE VIRTUAL FILIBUSTER HAD NOT BEEN ALLOWED TO SUCCEED, because of the number of Republicans who voted "Yes". My first reaction: the southern Republicans who opposed this were willing to risk bringing down the entire economy to destroy a union and deal a death blow to organized labor. Can anyone here begin to imagine LBJ allowing just the THREAT of a filibuster to have prevailed like this when the stakes were so high? Neither can I. If this were a country that valued pride, Reid would resign in shame. I am simply disgusted. |
But now there is the possibility that Bush may use an executive order to make some of the TARP funds available to keep the automakers from completely tanking. So, that may make the following paragraph, written before this was announced, moot. But I'm going to leave it here, just in case (and at the time I'm writing this final update on Dec. 15, it's not at all clear yet that the TARP funds in fact will be used this way), and because this will be far from the last time that this will apply:
There is still the faint hope that a motion to reconsider might be made, since Reid voted "no". That allows him to make this motion. But that too will fail unless he announces to all the world that anyone who wants to block this will need to stand up before the cameras of the nation and show their faces, and explain why they are willing to bring down the remains of our shattered economy so that they can destroy a union and deal a death blow to organized labor. Make them explain this endlessly, peeing in buckets, knowing that all of the millions of workers who are facing the loss of their livelihoods are watching them, not letting them take a break while they show themselves as willing to thwart the rule of the elected majority. Make them sweat. Make them accountable. MAKE THEM STAND UP AND DO THIS.
THAT'S HOW YOU WIN, DAMMIT.