So much for that ‘majority rule’ talk

January 25, 2007

For the last few years, congressional Republicans would cry “obstructionism!” at the drop of a hat. Any effort to stand in the way of the president’s agenda in Congress was outrageous, offensive, and possibly even unconstitutional. What mattered, more than anything, was preserving the notion of majority rule. To filibuster was to be un-American.

That was then. Have you noticed how the GOP has suddenly rediscovered its appreciation for standing in the way of the majority?

Back when he was in the Senate majority, Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell thought it was pretty outrageous that Democrats were using the threat of filibusters to set up a 60-vote requirement for the confirmation of a handful of George W. Bush’s judicial nominees. McConnell called the Democrats’ tactics an “ugly denial” of “fundamental fairness” that was “unprecedented in the history of the country” and would cause “great damage” to the U.S. Senate.

Now that the Republicans are in the minority, it turns out that using filibusters to force 60-vote cloture votes is nothing other than standard operating procedure. The Senate is set to debate competing anti-escalation resolutions next week, and McConnell tells MSNBC that all of them “are likely, as virtually everything in the Senate is likely, to be subject to a 60-vote threshold.”

Remind me, what was that the GOP was saying about “obstructionism”?

Yesterday, Republicans filibustered a minimum-wage increase, even though a majority of senators supported it, the House already passed it, and the measure enjoyed broad bipartisan support across the country. No matter, GOP senators said, this was no time for an up-or-down vote.

Soon, many of those same Republicans will also explain that they’re afraid of a non-binding resolution on the president’s escalation policy, so this can’t have an up-or-down vote either. Again, bipartisan support isn’t enough — McConnell & Co. want 60 votes.

They’re off to a good start, aren’t they? Less than a month into the 110th Congress, the GOP caucus has delivered two high-profile filibusters on two measures with broad support, both of which would pass if brought to the floor for a vote.

If I didn’t know better, I might think the Republicans were suddenly afraid of majority rule. That couldn’t be, could it?

A synonym for the word “Republican” is “hypocrite.” Most of them have lifelong experience with that.

  • I would repeat Chuck Hagel’s challenge to his peers who are for the surge: Go in front of the cameras and explain why you’re for it.
    Same thing for the MW. Stand up and be counted as the ones who don’t want folks to make a little more a week.

    Damn. Did I just make a positive reference to a Republican?

  • As I recall the Dem never used the filibuster after being threatened with the nuclear option. There must be something the Republicans want that Dems can deny for leverage.

  • IOKIYAR
    Honesty has no place in these people’s actions. Nor does democracy, nor does decency or shame.
    It is all about power & hardball.
    For every obstruction they throw the Dems way, the Dems should cut the Republican’t out of the process, just as was done to them.
    No pork for you!

  • In the last Congress, Republicans were whining about the filibuster, not in general, but only as it applied to judicial nominations. Not that their whining then was at all justified, but they’re not really being hypocritical in these latest cases because the cloture votes weren’t for judicial nominations.

  • But they still threw around the “OBSTRUCTIONIST” charge freely and often. At a minimum it should be used the same way against them now

  • McConnell’s really bucking for “Worst Person of the Week”, isn’t he?

    We need one of those TDS montages comparing what Republicans said then to what they’re saying now.

  • The only thing they are obstructing is the will of the people. I’m sure some beltway wingnut will be along shortly to explain this is bold and visionary leadership. Which one will step up? Kristol? Hewitt? Bennett? I realize the creepy veep was on with Wolfie yesterday, but aren’t Cheney’s daughters also due a turn to gnaw on Wolfie’s flesh? Or is wolf meat only on Dick and Lynn’s menus?

  • #2 – The nuclear option won’t work as long as Dick Cheney is still VP and presides over the Senate. Unless McConnell filibusters when Cheney is out hunting, in which case Sen. Byrd will preside, and can pull the nuclear option…

  • Now that we have the majority the GOP is relying on a superior media machine to ignore their obivous and blatant hypocracies such as filibustering. We’ve got them running, we need to run them down, retake the media, retake the framing, and retake the debate.

  • Also for the record: presidential candidate Brownback, as well as Hagel and McCain, voted to kill the Federal minimum wage. Eliminating the minimum wage is not a fringe position in the Republican party, and it is ideologically consistent with their stated core philosophy.

    Maybe the political middle in this country will start to pay attention to votes like this that show some of the fundamental philisophical differences between the parties. If the message gets through, the Republican’s are (deservedly) screwed for a generation unless they decide to move back to more mainstream positions. Hopefully, media and money can only carry what should be a minor party for so long .

  • Fine with me, the more they act like children, the better chance we have of getting the Presidency in 008.

    The election proved that people are paying closer attention to politics then they think. If they would turn off Fox News for a minute, they might realize they are their own biggest fans, the rest of us are counting the minutes until the next election.

  • It might be interesting to see what the Republicans do if legislation or a rules change is offered that disables the possibility of the “nuclear option.” The Democrats can’t always be certain of maintaining their majority and the Repugs were too tempted by its power and may be again. It might be fun to see what kind on contortions they go through about retaining or discarding the option.

  • Interesting point, Jay, but maybe we ought not play with fire. I hate to overestimate the reason and nobility of the Republicans but in this fight, the Democrats cannot eliminate the fillibuster without looking awful. I could be wrong, but I think at least a part of the reason the Republicans took such an ass-whipping in November has to do with their terrible abuses of the collegiality of Congress and the Senate.

    If the Democrats turn around and shove something like this through, they will destroy themselves. I for one will never vote Democratic again–though that’s going to severely restrict my options since I can’t vote Republican either. Hmmmm? I guess I’m saying I’ll have lost what small respect I have for them.

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