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Showing Original Post only (View all)Joe Manchin: I will not vote to eliminate or weaken the filibuster [View all]
Washington PostWhen Americans vote to send their two senators to Washington, they trust that they will work to represent the interests of their state on equal footing with 98 other senators. I have always said, If I cant go home and explain it, I cant vote for it. And I respect that each of my colleagues has the same responsibility to their constituents.
Its no accident that a state as small as West Virginia has the same number of senators as California or Texas. It goes to the heart of what representative government is all about. The Founding Fathers understood that the challenges facing a rural or small state would always be very different from a more populous state. Designating each state with the same number of senators regardless of the population ensured that rural and small states and the Americans who live in them would always have a seat at the table.
The filibuster is a critical tool to protecting that input and our democratic form of government. That is why I have said it before and will say it again to remove any shred of doubt: There is no circumstance in which I will vote to eliminate or weaken the filibuster. The time has come to end these political games, and to usher a new era of bipartisanship where we find common ground on the major policy debates facing our nation.
Think about the recent history. In 2013, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) led the charge to change Senate rules to eliminate the filibuster for Cabinet-level nominees and federal judges. I was one of only three Democratic senators to vote against this rule change. In 2017, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) proposed to lower the threshold to end debate on Supreme Court nominees to a simple majority. I voted against that change, too. Despite my votes, both rules changes were enacted and the filibuster was weakened, allowing the majority to more easily enact its agenda with little to no input from the minority.
Its no accident that a state as small as West Virginia has the same number of senators as California or Texas. It goes to the heart of what representative government is all about. The Founding Fathers understood that the challenges facing a rural or small state would always be very different from a more populous state. Designating each state with the same number of senators regardless of the population ensured that rural and small states and the Americans who live in them would always have a seat at the table.
The filibuster is a critical tool to protecting that input and our democratic form of government. That is why I have said it before and will say it again to remove any shred of doubt: There is no circumstance in which I will vote to eliminate or weaken the filibuster. The time has come to end these political games, and to usher a new era of bipartisanship where we find common ground on the major policy debates facing our nation.
Think about the recent history. In 2013, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) led the charge to change Senate rules to eliminate the filibuster for Cabinet-level nominees and federal judges. I was one of only three Democratic senators to vote against this rule change. In 2017, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) proposed to lower the threshold to end debate on Supreme Court nominees to a simple majority. I voted against that change, too. Despite my votes, both rules changes were enacted and the filibuster was weakened, allowing the majority to more easily enact its agenda with little to no input from the minority.
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Joe Manchin: I will not vote to eliminate or weaken the filibuster [View all]
brooklynite
Apr 2021
OP
He's taken over the Susan Collins position and he is flexing his power and seeking attention.
TheBlackAdder
Apr 2021
#27
The filibuster hurts only Senate Democrats -- and Mitch McConnell knows that. The numbers don't lie.
Celerity
Apr 2021
#16
AZ and WV will be flooded w/vaccinated constituents in the streets this summer
Fiendish Thingy
Apr 2021
#23
The part that is enraging me most is that they apparently are not even open to modifications of
Celerity
Apr 2021
#24
Hey, and I've said before.......I know people that will help Senator Manchin come to the right
a kennedy
Apr 2021
#17