Over the past nine months America has faced a global pandemic, unprecedented civil unrest, and unemployment numbers that haven’t been seen since the Great Depression. Partisan divides have never run deeper. What America needs right now is leadership that will help unite the country and heal the wounds that have been inflected during one of the ugliest periods of our history. However, as we move closer to November 3rd and the potential for Democrats to flip the Senate continues to increase, progressives are calling for the elimination of the filibuster, which will only deepen our country’s wounds and partisan divide.
The legislative filibuster solidifies the Senate’s role as “the world’s greatest deliberative body.” Though not written into the constitutional framework of the Senate, it aligns with the general goal of protecting the political minority and requiring thoughtful deliberation for legislative change.
Since 2016, the filibuster has been used to block the far right’s agenda, including gutting the Affordable Care Act, restricting abortion, removing gun safety protections, and ending immigration. Progressives aren’t seeing the forest through the trees. They are focused on the opportunity to push through their agenda that will pull the Democratic party so far left the damage it will do will be felt up and down the ballot for years to come. Ultimately, this could lead to Democrats losing future elections, Republicans retaining control of the Senate, and passing their own extreme legislation. If the roles were reversed, Democrats would be aiming to protect the filibuster.
We’ve already gotten a preview of what can happen without protections like the filibuster. Republicans have been able to confirm over 200 judicial nominees. Democrats opened this door in 2013. If progressives get rid of the filibuster now, it would only be a matter of time until Republicans regained control of the Senate and sought to push through the types of far-right policies the far-left would want to protect against. That’s how our democracy works. It functions best when there are tools available to promote more moderate outcomes. What happens if the filibuster is no longer available to protect the minority?
All we have to do is look at the states, where restrictions on abortion rights, increases in voter suppression laws, and other partisan legislation has passed. Rather than fighting over the filibuster, Democrats should focus their energy on passing meaningful reforms, including addressing the crumbling COVID-19 economy and bringing America back to a place that allows for thoughtful discussion and carefully considered ideas.