Category Archives: legislation and legislatures
“The Majoritarian Filibuster”
Timely student note in the Yale Law Journal by Benjamin Eidelson.
The debate over the Senate filibuster revolves around its apparent conflict with the principle of majority rule. Because narrow Senate majorities often represent only a minority of Americans, however,… Continue reading
“Senate Democrats Lack Votes for ‘Talking Filibuster’ Plan”
Roll Call: “Democratic senators favoring the most robust overhaul of the chamber’s filibuster rules do not have the votes to enact a ‘talking filibuster,’ even with a simple majority, according to the top Democratic vote-counter.’
“K Street Sings the Blues”
Politico: “K Street is living through lean times. The majority of big D.C. lobby shops have seen their revenues flat-line or decline during the last year of President Barack Obama’s first term — buffeted by a lingering global financial… Continue reading
“Republicans and the Filibuster Endgame”
Smart Jonathan Bernstein Post-Partisan blog post: “But overall, it’s really easy for me to imagine a large group of Republican senators loudly opposing Senate reform while privately wishing that Democrats will go nuclear. Which means that Democrats who really want… Continue reading
“Dan Walters: Lawmakers ask Californians to do as they say, not do”
New column: “When members of the California Legislature pass legislation, they are, in effect, writing rules they expect everyone to obey. It’s particularly strange, therefore, that legislators skirt, or even ignore, the rules they are supposed to follow.”
“Court of Appeal Rules Legislature Violated The Constitution Last Fall When It Passed a Spot Bill To Put The Governor’s Tax Measure At The Top Of The Ballot “
The following press release from Nielsen Merksamer arrived via email:
Court of Appeal Rules Legislature Violated The Constitution Last Fall When It Passed a Spot Bill To Put The Governor’s Tax Measure At The Top Of The Ballot
CONCLUDES THE… Continue reading
“Reid to lay out plans for filibuster reform”
The Hill: “Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) will present colleagues with options for reforming the Senate’s filibuster rules in a Democratic caucus meeting Tuesday. Reid and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) are close to reaching a deal… Continue reading
Ezra Klein on Filibuster Reform
Important piece in The New Yorker. Klein quotes Tom Mann on why a half-measured reform would be worse than no reform: “You won’t have fixed the Senate. But you will have further poisoned the environment.”
A timely article, as filibuster… Continue reading
“Fiscal Footnote: Big Senate Gift to Drug Maker”
Must read NYT on a big favor to AmGen buried in Congress’s “fiscal cliff” bill.
“Why Standing Up to the War Lobby is an Ethics Issue”
Controversial post by Richard Painter.
Charles Fried and Fred Schwartz on Filibuster Reform
Here, in Boston Review.
“How the Senate Filibuster Has Weakened Over Time”
“No Votes Disguise Yes Sympathies for Some in G.O.P.”
NYT: “House Republicans have their Tea Party Caucus. They have their G.O.P. Doctors Caucus. And, joining the list of varied special interest caucuses, they recently picked up another influential but much more unofficial group — the Vote No/Hope Yes… Continue reading