Professor Brad DeLong on his blog today included a link to the U.S. Senate reference page on cloture motions.
Looking at the chart will show you just how much things have changed as the filibuster has morphed from being a tool to ensure everyone has time to make all of their arguments in a debate into a weapon to obstruct debate and action.
Let's put it this way: 25.7 percent of all successful cloture motions in the history of the U.S. Senate have happened since the Democrats retook control of the Senate in 2007.
Yes, you read that right. More than one-quarter of all successful cloture votes in the history of our Republic have happened in just the past three years. And the 2000s have seen particular abuse of the system that is accelerating.
This is nothing less than an amendment of our system of government without public debate and without going through our Constitutional process.
For how much longer must we tolerate it?
Leave a comment