RefBan

Referral Banners

Friday, November 30, 2012

Politics: Make ?Em Talk

Slate Magazine
Now playing: Slate V, a video-only site from the world's leading online magazine. Visit Slate V at www.slatev.com.
Politics
Make 'Em Talk
Four reasons why the latest Democratic ploy to change the Senate filibuster might actually work.
By David Weigel
Posted Thursday, Nov 29, 2012, at 04:37 AM ET

Nobody spits out the word efficiency quite like Mitch McConnell. Every morning this week, the Republican leader has stood behind his desk in the Senate and warned of Democratic tyranny. He's pronounced the "e" word with contempt so thick it practically fogs his glasses.

"In the name of efficiency," he said on Monday, "their plan is to use a heavy-handed tactic that would poison party relations even more. In the name of efficiency, they would prevent the very possibility of compromise, and threaten to make the disputes of the past few years look like pillow fights."

The next day, he characterized Harry Reid's position as: "We have to make the Senate more efficient, and we have to violate the Senate's rules to do so, so that he and his colleagues in the majority can implement more easily their vision for America."

The "heavy-handed" tactic in question is filibuster reform. In 2013, on their third attempt in eight years, senators might actually tweak the filibuster. To understand why Democrats might actually pull this off, you have to understand what "this" is. Democratic aides describe a small number of connected changes, which could be voted through on Jan. 3, the day the new Senate convenes. Only 51 votes are needed to set Senate rules at the start of the year. After that, it would take 67 votes. Democrats will have 53 seats, and two independents who've announced they'll caucus with them.

Currently, the motion to go to ...

To continue reading, click here.

Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum
What did you think of this article?
POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES

Also In Slate

We Won the White Vote


The Big East Is a Failed Experiment


Liz Lemon Gets Married and 30 Rock Solves the Traditional Wedding Dilemma for the Rest Of Us

Advertisement


Manage your newsletters subscription: Unsubscribe | Forward to a Friend | Advertising Information


Ideas on how to make something better? Send an e-mail to slatenewsletter@nl.slate.com.

Copyright 2011 The Slate Group | Privacy Policy
The Slate Group | c/o E-mail Customer Care | 1350 Connecticut Ave NW Suite 410 | Washington, D.C. 20036


No comments: