by Gary Morris
Chairman, Gila County Republican Committee
On Thursday, November 21, the U.S. Senate voted to eliminate the 60 vote requirement necessary to pass legislation. This Senate “Rule” has been in place since 1789 and is often called the “Filibuster Rule.” Its purpose was to require 60 votes to end debate (filibuster) on legislation which would then allow the Bill to move to final vote for passage. Where 60 votes are not achieved, Senators can continue to debate the Bills’ benefits and consequences. Where debate is allowed to continue, both transparency and public awareness is increased regarding the issues. The latest example of the public awareness was the 22 hour filibuster by Texas Senator Ted Cruz regarding Obama Care. Despite what the Democrats alleged, Senator Cruz has been proven correct.
Thursday’s vote by the Senate DOES NOT affect ALL legislation. It applies only to votes on judicial (judges) nominations and cabinet appointments, etc.
The primary objective of the Rule change is to ram through judicial appointments for the “D.C. Circuit” Court and expand the number of judges for this Circuit. The reason? This is the Court that will hear any future suits or appeals regarding Obama Care. If this occurs, it will be very difficult to repeal and replace the law.
Republican Response?
The Republican Senators have done nothing in response. In fact, in the middle of this legislature crisis, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was criticizing Tea Party Senators by stating “They need a punch in the nose."
The most effective response for Republicans would be to end the Democrat super majority on legislative issues. Republican Senators should filibuster every Democrat sponsored Bill and deny all requests for unanimous consent until the 224 year old Rule is re-established. Yet, just an hour after the Rule was changed, the Republicans rewarded the Democrats by not objecting to the first unanimous consent.
The second Republican response should be to stigmatize every judicial appointment that occurs under the Rule change. Every present and future Republican Senator should pledge to uphold this position. Every judge should know going into the appointment process that their careers will be ended. They should understand that no Republican will ever vote in favor of any further advancement in their careers.
The third Republican response should be to object to all other Obama agenda items that make the Senate floor every time legislation is submitted.
Please communicate the above suggested actions to the following senators:
The Honorable Senator Jeff Flake
United States Senator
730 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-0304
Phone 202-224-4521 (DC)
FAX 202-228-0515 (DC)
Phone 602-840-1891 (PHX)
The Honorable John McCain
United States Senator
241 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-0303
Phone 202-224-2235 (DC)
FAX 202-228-2862 (DC)
Phone 602-952-2410 (PHX)
The Honorable Mitch McConnell
317 Russell Office Senate Building
Washington, D.C.
Phone 202-224-2541 (DC)
FAX 202-224-2499 (DC)
Source: Limbaugh, Red State.com