The new Congress convenes on Wednesday. We will know by that evening whether the Administration is serious about "change we can believe in," because Vice President Joseph Biden will have been asked to rule, as President of the Senate (his only constitutionally-prescribed duty) whether the Senate is a continuing or non-continuing body and, therefore, whether, as the latter, it can change its rules, including Rule 22, by a simple majority. He should do so. That, obviously, doesn't conclude the matter, because then the will of the Democratic majority will be tested, and 50 of the 53 Democrats will have to vote to modify the existing filibuster rules. I personally fear that there aren't the votes available, but, to put it mildly, every member of the Senate should be forced to go on the record as to reforming that truly egregious institution (which, of course, I believe would be fundamentally illegitimate even if there were no filibuster, but the filibuster makes it even more so). If Biden refuses to make change thinkable (even if he cannot guarantee its actuality), then both Democrats and democrats should know that the Obama Administration is in no serious way committed to changing the institutional matrix of American politics that makes it next to impossible to achieve its policy goals. And the saddest thing, of course, is that ostensible "Democrats" will not feel themselves under great public pressure, because they know that what passes for the American left, unlike Tea Partiers, seems totally unwilling to engage in serious mass politics (including threats of disruption and other "uncivil" actions). Compare with the terror that the Tea Party has generated in congressional Republicans, each of whom seems to fear a primary opponent in 2012 if they do not themselves adopt the demeanor of utter "mad dogs." I say this less critically than it might sound; the fact is that Tea Partiers believe in democratic politics and have faith in their fellow countrymen and women in a way that the contemporary American left simply does not. And, of course, they know that politics is quite often motivated by anger (which is often justified) and a concomitant willingness to breach certain norms of "civility." (This view, of course, is in tension with the rally called by Jon Stewart.)
The President should hold a news conference explaining why reform of the Senate is absolutely essential and put the spotlight on Democrats. It's utterly beside the point to blame Senate Republicans, who have consistently behaved "rationally" given the perverse incentives generated by our thoroughly dysfunctional Constitution.
As I have previously argued, there may be an argument for retaining some form of filibuster in very limited contexts, including, perhaps, confirmations of lifetime appointments to the federal judiciary. There is no justification whatsoever for the Senate's practice of holds, especially "secret" ones. In any event, Biden's ruling that the filibuster rule is subject to change by majority vote doesn't necessarily entail getting rid of it entirely; rather that there should be a fully serious discussion, covered live on C-Span explaining its merits and demerits to an American public that jusifiably feels ever more alienated from a political system that is not working and, more to the point, cannot work without significant reform. (Perhaps Bernie Sanders can take the lead in explaining the utter bankruptcy of the Senate's way of "doing business.")
For relevant commentary, see the New York Times editorial appearing in Monday's paper and, even more to the point, the op-ed by former Senator and Vice President Walter F. Mondale, titled "Resolved: Fix the Filibuster."
The President should hold a news conference explaining why reform of the Senate is absolutely essential and put the spotlight on Democrats. It's utterly beside the point to blame Senate Republicans, who have consistently behaved "rationally" given the perverse incentives generated by our thoroughly dysfunctional Constitution.
As I have previously argued, there may be an argument for retaining some form of filibuster in very limited contexts, including, perhaps, confirmations of lifetime appointments to the federal judiciary. There is no justification whatsoever for the Senate's practice of holds, especially "secret" ones. In any event, Biden's ruling that the filibuster rule is subject to change by majority vote doesn't necessarily entail getting rid of it entirely; rather that there should be a fully serious discussion, covered live on C-Span explaining its merits and demerits to an American public that jusifiably feels ever more alienated from a political system that is not working and, more to the point, cannot work without significant reform. (Perhaps Bernie Sanders can take the lead in explaining the utter bankruptcy of the Senate's way of "doing business.")
For relevant commentary, see the New York Times editorial appearing in Monday's paper and, even more to the point, the op-ed by former Senator and Vice President Walter F. Mondale, titled "Resolved: Fix the Filibuster."
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