A Filibuster is a form of political obstruction that reaches as far back as Ancient Roman times. One of the first known practitioners of the Filibuster was Roman senator Cato the Younger. Cato would obstruct a measure by speaking continuously until nightfall as the the Roman Senate had a rule requiring all business to conclude by dusk. Cato's long-winded speeches could forestall a vote.
So if I were to take a guess, I would say nine out of ten Americans do not know what a Filibuster is or how it works. Given all the talk of late about how the left wants to end the Filibuster, here is my best explanation in simple terms. A Filibuster is a political procedure where one or more members of Congress debate over a proposed piece of legislation to delay or entirely prevent a decision being made on the proposal. It’s a form of obstruction. A Senator or Senators can get up and speak for as long as they wish and on any topic, they choose in order to delay a vote. Defenders call the Filibuster "The Soul of the Senate".
Now if the Senate can muster votes from 60 of the 100 Senators, they can end the debate. This is called a cloture. The longest ever single Senator Filibuster was Strom Thurmond on the Civil Rights Act of 1957 and he talked for 24 hours and 18 minutes. The longest ever coordinated Filibuster was Richard Russell, Strom Thurmond, Robert Byrd, William Fulbright, and Sam Ervin on the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and they talked for 60 days. The Senate finally got the votes to end it. These were all Dixiecrat’s I might add. A Dixiecrat is a southern democrat, you know the party of slavery and Jim Crow.
Last year the Democrat’s used the Filibuster 327 times. The Republicans used it once. Joe Biden has recently called the Filibuster a relic of the Jim Crow era and racist yet in 2005 on the Senate floor he passionately defended it. Biden argued, ending the Filibuster would be “catastrophic.” It would destroy “America’s sense of fair play.” It would sully “the one thing this country stands for: Not tilting the playing field on the side of those who control and own the field.”
For half a century, Biden was one of the most emphatic defenders of the Filibuster in the history of the United States. His flip on this is unbelievable. Who are these people. Can we trust anything they say?
The Democrats are desperate to get rid of the Filibuster because they see it as an obstacle to passing their far-left agenda. An agenda that would send this country into a tailspin as we’ve in no way seen. It won’t look like the country you and I grew up in.
Without the Filibuster, Democrats would be able to pass pretty much whatever they want. If they're successful, their socialist policies will control this country for a long time to come. God help us.
Long live the Filibuster.
Written by Walt Ryba March 30, 2021
Comments