(Who’s kidding who? The U.S. Congress isn’t a legislature; it’s a non-working replica of one — and you can blame the filibuster. Here’s my new column from RealClearPolitics.)
By FRANK MIELE
So what has Congress done for you lately?
Big Beautiful Bill? Sure. I’ll give you that one. And it covered a huge amount of ground, from tax cuts to border spending, but that was eight months ago.
Since then, nothing. Zero. Zilch. Squat.
Oh sure, the Republicans have held only a five-vote majority in the House for most of the past year, but if you blame that skinny GOP margin for the lack of legislation, you are doing a disservice to Speaker Mike Johnson, who has managed to win votes with one of the narrowest majorities in modern times.
So no, it isn’t the House that’s the problem. Look at the recent vote on the SAVE America Act as an example. It passed in the House of Representatives on Feb. 11 with a vote of 218-213, with all Republicans present voting in favor along with one solitary Democrat.
That legislation is the latest effort by Republicans to require voter ID for federal elections. The bill would require proof of citizenship to register, eliminate mail-only registrations, and require photo ID nationwide – changes Republicans argue are essential to election integrity.
In other words, it is legislation that would satisfy the promise made by almost every Republican candidate to ensure that elections are fairly decided. Moreover, it enjoys overwhelming support across party lines.
So why did it take so long to pass in the House, and what’s the holdup in sending the bill to President Trump for his signature?
That’s easy. You can blame the United States Senate – namely, the Republican controlled Senate led by Majority Leader John Thune. Despite Republicans having a 53-47 edge over the Democrats, they are virtually incapable of moving any legislation successfully to the president.
Well, what about the aforementioned Big Beautiful Bill? The Senate approved that massive bill, didn’t it? That’s right, and therein lies a tale. The bill passed 51-50 with the tie-breaking vote of Vice President JD Vance, but it was a unicorn – because unlike most partisan legislation it was able to pass with a simple majority.
That’s thanks to an arcane process known as reconciliation, which allows the Senate to bypass ordinary rules governing the filibuster, the legislative trick which gives any senator the opportunity to block votes unless three-fifths of the body overrides him or her.
So if you have concluded that reconciliation is the best method by which Congress can actually pass laws, you are not far wrong. Unfortunately, because reconciliation derives from the Budget Act, it has sway only on budget resolutions, and then only if the Senate parliamentarian deems it worthy of the Byrd Rule. (Contrary to popular opinion, this has nothing to do with sorting through the entrails of a bird of prey for signs of divine favor.)
That means most legislation such as the SAVE America Act is still subject to the filibuster, which barring a supermajority by one party results in a bottleneck on almost all legislation except for that which is so mundane no one can think of a reason to vote against it.
Now, possibly there is a faction in America dedicated to the proposition that Thoreau was right when he declared “That government is best which governs least,” and if so they are right to embrace the filibuster because its sole purpose seems to be to prevent legislation from being passed – even legislation like the SAVE America Act that commands broad public support.
Alternatively, I suppose there are those who still subscribe to the notion that the Senate is the “cooling saucer” of Congress where dispassionate analysis will replace the heated discourse seen in the House. Perhaps that made sense in the 19th century under the original constitutional framework whereby senators were chosen by state legislatures to represent the political interests of a state as a whole. But that went out the window with the 17th Amendment that ordered the election of senators by popular vote and thus made them subject to the same vagaries of expediency as those lowly House members.
And while we are at it, let’s also make a comparison between the practice of the filibuster in the 19th and early 20th centuries and what it has devolved into in the 21st. When originally instituted, the filibuster only postponed votes for as long as the opponents could keep talking on the floor of the Senate. Nowadays, any 41 senators can block legislation with nothing more than a silent threat, turning the Senate into a supermajority institution in contrast to the intentions of the Constitution.
If you want to know why nothing gets done in Congress, look no further. Even senators admitted as much when they scrapped the filibuster for judges. Apparently majority rule works just fine when it comes to reshaping the federal judiciary – but not when it comes to writing laws that affect everyday Americans.
Thune has expressed little appetite for scrapping the filibuster to pass the SAVE America Act, preferring the comfort of Senate tradition. That caution may be institutionally admirable, but politically it is dangerous. Tradition that paralyzes the body is not prudence – it is abdication. And a majority leader who presides over paralysis is not preserving the Senate – he is shrinking it.
The usual warning is that Republicans will regret ending the filibuster when Democrats regain power. Perhaps. But that is how self-government works. Elections have consequences. If one party wins, it should govern. If voters dislike the results, they can correct the mistake at the next election.
No one will object to restoring the “talking filibuster” that Jimmy Stewart made famous in “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.” If senators want to hold the floor and defend their position for hours or days, fine. Let them sweat. Let them make their case. But the modern filibuster requires no courage, no stamina, and no public accountability. It’s government by anonymous veto.
Republicans did not campaign on maintaining Senate tradition. They campaigned on border security, election integrity, fiscal restraint, and regulatory reform. A 53-seat majority is not a landslide, but it is a governing majority. If they allow procedural paralysis to smother their own agenda, they will have no one to blame when voters conclude they squandered their opportunity.
Government is supposed to be a living organism, responsive to the will of voters. Instead, the Senate has become a museum piece – carefully preserved, rarely touched, and largely incapable of action. If Republicans believe in their agenda, they should pass it. If Democrats win the next election, let them try theirs. That’s not chaos. That’s self-government.
About Heartland Diary USA
Heartland Diary is solely operated by Frank Miele, the retired editor of the Daily Inter Lake in Kalispell, Montana. If you enjoy reading these daily essays, I hope you will SUBSCRIBE to www.HeartlandDiaryUSA.com by leaving your email address on the home page. Also please consider purchasing one of my books. They are available through the following Amazon links. My new book is “What Matters Most: God, Country, Family and Friends” and is a collection of personal essays that transcend politics. My earlier books include “How We Got Here: The Left’s Assault on the Constitution,” “The Media Matrix: What if everything you know is fake?” and the “Why We Needed Trump” trilogy. Part 1 is subtitled “Bush’s Global Failure: Half Right.” Part 2 is “Obama’s Fundamental Transformation: Far Left.” Part 3 is “Trump’s American Vision: Just Right.” As an Amazon Associate, I may earn referral fees for qualifying purchases through links on my website.
