Oct 1, 2010
Check out this list to see just how the Senate rules block a majority of senators from taking up important measures and getting the people’s business done. Unanimous consent. All 100 senators must agree that the business of the Senate will go forward. One senator can stop bills, nominations, appointments, even ordinary actions like naming a post office.
Oct 1, 2010
Senate rules, and especially the rules about filibuster and debate, have changed a lot over our nation’s history.
Oct 1, 2010
The current Senate rules haven’t been changed for decades. They just don’t work in today’s super-charged political climate. In past years, our nation was able to move forward on landmark legislation that put in place workers’ rights, civil rights, retirement security for seniors and so much more. Today, we only see outrageous obstruction, like this:
Oct 1, 2010
Obstruction tactic No. 1—Endless Debate The word “debate” does not mean much in the United States Senate. Rather than being a free exchange of ideas intended to convince other senators of one position or another, most Senate debate time is occupied by senators giving closely vetted speeches to an almost-entirely empty chamber. Nevertheless, the Senate rules make it very difficult to stop the serial speeches and actually hold a vote. Unless at least 60 senators agree to hold a vote, the speeches go on forever.
Oct 1, 2010
Just how bad are things today in the Senate? If the climate of obstructionism in the Senate that exists today represented how that body has always operated, landmark legislation that brought social and economic justice to millions of Americans would never have been enacted. Organizing and bargaining rights through the National Labor Relations Act. Secure retirement and health care for older Americans that resulted from the Social Security and Medicare programs. An end to years of discrimination endured by people of color through the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act.
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