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Today, the United States Senate hit a new low. This morning, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) introduced a bill to reform the debt limit charade so that the president could spend money authorized and appropriated by Congress as long as the Congress didn’t vote by two-thirds to prohibit him from borrowing the money necessary to conduct United States operations at home and abroad. This would eliminate the absurdity — and economic damage — done last summer when the Congress held the debt limit hostage in budget negotiations.
Senator Harry Reid (D-NV), the Senate Majority Leader then decided to let the bill come to a vote this afternoon. To which Senator McConnell objected, calling for a 60-vote threshold to pass the bill.
He filibustered his own bill.
Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) asked the parliamentarian to determine if this has ever happened before, but it couldn’t happen at a better time as the Senate prepares to reform (or eliminate!) the filibuster. This craziness, as demonstrated by McConnell’s absurd pretzel logic on the floor today, must end.
If anything can build public pressure on the US Senate to change its ridiculous rules when it returns in January, it would have to be this nugget going viral. The more people see this, the more Americans will have to pressure their Senators to reform their own rules.
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Maybe if the filibuster is reformed or eliminated, Feinstein will get pissed off enough to switch parties officially. We can hope!
I just wish she’d pass on to homebody or something. Warmongering whore of millions of deaths from her husbands toys and her political support of the MIC.
I’m sure Moscone has rolled over in his grave many times thru the years.
Great read Teddy . . . *facepalm* indeed.
Sure hope this sparks a storm amongst the citizenry and the Congress.
Change is needed, badly. CA can’t carry the nation on its own, Washington MUST be ‘adjusted’ politically to reserve we the people, not itself and its corporate masters.
Rcc’d, of course, thanks for the FB listing, saw it there first.
Mitch-ibustered!
Now there’s a thought! Won’t hold my breath.
When I read shit like this… my blood just boils. Can’t believe these pissants collect a paycheck, benefits, pension, health care via OUR tax dollars. What a waste of my hard-earned money.
Crooks! The whole lot of ‘em: crooks.
Unfortunately, my reading of the reforms proposed is that they don’t go far enough–they still allow a filibuster that puts the onus on the majority.
The only reform that keeps the filibuster I favor would require 41 “yes” votes present at any time to maintain the filibuster instead of requiring 60 votes to end debate. That way, the minority party would have to keep 41 members on the Senate floor at all times, a stiff penalty. The majority party by contrast would then only have to keep 9, or 10, to maintain a quorum (50 or 51 members).
That’s fair. If the proposal is really something that the minority feels will end the Republic as we know it, then this is a price they will pay. But for just the little stuff? Nah.
Oh, and of course, limit the number of amendments that any one Senator can propose to a piece of legislation (another favorite delaying tactic) and also limit the time a “hold” can delay legislation. The original purpose of the “hold” was to give the Senator time to read the bill. I’d say that 2-3 days is plenty. And moreover to keep a group of Senators from ganging up to delay legislation limit the TOTAL number of amendments and holds that could be used on a bill After all, if one Senator gets 3 days to supposedly read a bill you’d assume that others could use the same time likewise.
-stewartm
Our Republican leaders are criminals in conspiracy to take over our government no matter what the people or the majority want. They are totalitarians wearing Free Market sheep’s clothing..
And thank you Teddy for the heads up.
Mitch McConnell is a piece of shit…nuf said.
A perfect example of,
“Look, my Senator has the intelligence of a dust bunny!”
–Jim Hightower
Mitch, a bus, turd.
There, that’s better.
;-)
Way too logical, and to no benefit for the Congress Cretans. ;-)
Let Beyonce have the last word here:
TAKE THAT MITCHES
Lawrence O’Donnell just featured this fiasco in his Rewrite segment, which he concluded by saying: “Mitch McConnell forgot the first rule for Senate Minority Leaders: if you’re going to pull a stunt be sure it’s going to work.”
Yeah, I just saw that…the whole thing is amazing. I kept wondering, while watching McConnell go through his “always requires 60 votes” how the hell he could have the nerve to say such ridiculous things. Just. amazing.
and while I’m not a big fan of McCaskill, her “whiplash” comment (while pushing away her mike) was priceless.
Sounds about right for Weimar. Of course the Dims won’t do the correct thing, they will at every opportunity ,of course, do the Right thing.
Claire was also pretty cool on Maddow’s show the other night. I’ve never been a fan of hers, except on the defense contracting thing, but perhaps this campaign close call will give her some courage.