Udall is Wrong on Filibuster

New Mexico Sen. Tom Udall wants to expedite legislative action in the Senate by eliminating the filibuster. If Udall has his way, the Senate would not need 60 votes anymore to proceed to a vote. A simple majority would suffice. This is not a good idea.

None other than George Washington explained that the Senate was designed to act as a “saucer” to “cool the passions” of the House which is more directly responsible to the people and comes up for election every two years. The Senate is meant to be slow.

The basic issue is that Udall views Senate action as inherently good. Of course, he is a member of the body and part of the Democratic majority, but legislative action in Washington more often than not reduces our freedoms rather than enhancing them. Witness the ObamaCare abomination as just one recent example. The Founders were justifiably suspicious of pure democracy which is little more than mob rule. That is why we have the Electoral College, the First Amendment (a protection against unpopular speech by minority groups), and arcane Senate rules that slow the process down and thwart simple majorities from making radical changes (to name just a few rules and laws against rampant majority rule).

Udall’s rule changes would undermine the Founders intent when it came to the Senate. I believe that all Republicans and most Democrats will reject his changes.