This week, the US Senate voted 54-46 to strengthen gun
safety laws in America. It failed. That’s right. 54%--a solid majority of the
US Senate--voted in favor of universal background checks, and the bill still
lost. Because the filibuster rule requires a 60% vote for anything to pass.
Which made me think about Elizabeth Warren.
You will recall that Ms. Warren carried her reform message
together with everybody’s highest hopes into the halls of congress. Shortly
after her election--I received an email from her. This is what she said:
“You know what I want to do. You know what I care about.
But here's the honest truth: Any senator can make a phone call to register an
objection to a bill, then business comes to a screeching halt. On the first day
of the new session in January, the Senate will have a unique opportunity to
change the filibuster rule with a simple majority
vote. I’ve joined Senator Jeff Merkle and four other senators to fight for this
reform on day one. No more bringing the work of this country to a dead stop.”
The only problem is that on the first day of the session
she fought for nothing of the sort. Neither did Jeff Merkle, nor any other
senator—Democrat or Republican. And by fight, I mean rise to their feet on the
floor of the Senate and use the filibuster to change the
filibuster. Bring that shameful institution to a screeching halt on behalf of
majority rule. Stop everything. Force a national conversation on why—in the
“world’s greatest deliberative body”--a simple majority isn’t enough?
Why--after 20 kids got their heads blown off—doesn't 54%
of Senators voting in favor of gun safety legislation advance that bill to the
next step? I’d like Ms. Warren, and Mr. Reid, and the Democratic majority in
the United States Senate to explain to the parents of those twenty dead six
year olds, why protecting the filibuster is so much more important than
protecting our children?
Oh and one more thing. Please stop sending out stupid
petitions. Do your job. You promised to fix the filibuster. Fix it.
Because your failure to fix it--not Ted Cruz, not Rand Paul, not
Mitch McConnell—your failure to fix the filibuster will
absolutely cost the lives of more innocent kids.
On the first day of this new session, the Democratic
majority in the US Senate had a golden opportunity to restore the principle of
majority rule and they chose instead to punt. Make no mistake about it, every
major policy failure since can be traced directly back to that breathtakingly
irresponsible choice.
If universal background checks—or any other sensible,
national policy—can’t muster a majority in the US Senate, I suppose I can live
with that. I wouldn’t be happy about it. But I’d accept it.
What’s unacceptable is when that same policy earns a majority of
votes and still doesn’t pass. Any Senator who can live with that outcome
doesn’t deserve to be there.
