An Astute Perspective on Filibuster Reform
Brian Darling /
Retiring Senator Chris Dodd (D–CT) gave his farewell speech on the Senate floor on Tuesday, and his speech was an excellent discussion of the pitfalls of so-called “filibuster reform.” Dodd is the longest serving Senator in Connecticut history and a veteran of the Senate Rules Committee. Other left-of-center Senators should read his speech and listen to his sage advice.
There is bipartisan opposition to the idea that the Senate’s rules on the filibuster should be changed. I explained the filibuster rule in a Foundry post in January of this year, “All Out Attack by the Left on the Filibuster”:
Rule 22 of the Senate’s rules governs the conduct of a filibuster and requires that a “Cloture Petition” be signed by 16 Senators to commence the process of shutting off debate on a nomination or legislation. The left wants to get rid of this rule because they don’t like the fact that the rule requires a vote of 60 members to shut off debate.