Introduced by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), the For the People Act would protect and expand voting rights, end partisan congressional gerrymandering, help get big money out of politics, bolster safeguards against foreign interference, strengthen government ethics rules, and more.
Today, Fix Our Senate announced over 40 new organizations have signed on to the campaign to eliminate the Senate filibuster.
Sen. McConnell is clearly getting desperate as momentum grows to eliminate the filibuster as a weapon he can use to maintain power from the minority and prevent Democrats from delivering on their promises.
Like so many other popular bills passing the House, meaningful gun violence prevention bills will never become law as long as Sen. McConnell can use the filibuster to block them.
Today, The New York Times Editorial Board called on Congress to end the filibuster in order to govern effectively and pass critical legislation on voting rights and democracy reform.
Following the Senate’s passage of the overwhelmingly popular American Rescue Plan that was unanimously opposed by Senate Republicans, more and more Democrats in Congress are acknowledging the need to eliminate the filibuster.
A poll commissioned by Fix Our Senate and conducted by Global Strategy Group found that 43% of registered voters in West Virginia see the filibuster as a way to create more gridlock.
Unless Democrats take steps to reform or eliminate the filibuster, McConnell can use this obstructionist weapon to block the For the People Act
President Biden’s legislative ambitions face a crucial test in the narrowly divided Congress this month, with key Democratic senators signaling they want to pump the brakes.
Once obscure, the Senate filibuster is coming under fresh scrutiny not only because of the enormous power it gives a single senator to halt President Joe Biden’s agenda, but as a tool historically used for racism.
Gun control groups are joining the progressive fight to end the filibuster as the Senate voting rule threatens their goal of passing comprehensive gun reform.
"Historian of the 20th century South here. I dispute Mitch's statement. The filibuster has a ton of 'racial history.'"
This brief will explore the racist history of the filibuster, how it came to be used as it is today, and outline this history specifically through the lens of gun violence prevention, cataloging legislation that has been impeded by the use of the filibuster, obstructing progress toward safer communities and fewer needless tragedies.
The filibuster is a procedural tool of the Senate that delays or prevents a piece of legislation from being brought to a vote. It is a vestige of a deal made to appeal to segregationists and has historically been used to block passage of civil rights legislation.
