Democrats Announce Their Shameless Plans To Bulldoze The Senate And Supreme Court

SENATE REPUBLICAN LEADER MITCH McCONNELL (R-KY): ‘Whenever They Think [The Filibuster Is] Getting In The Way Of Something They Really Want To Do, They’re Going To Break The Rules,’ ‘I Think They’ll Do It’

“Mitch McConnell is convinced of one thing: The Democratic Party would have the support it needs to kill the Senate filibuster if it takes full control of Washington this year. The outgoing Republican leader told Semafor on Thursday that he now believes Democrats, should they sweep into power this fall, would dispense with the Senate’s 60-vote threshold to pass most legislation. ‘I don’t think they’re kidding. I think they’ll do it,’ McConnell said.” (“McConnell: Democrats Would End The Filibuster If They Sweep On Election Day,” Semafor, 9/26/2024)

·       “‘What I concluded is, whenever they think it’s getting in the way of something they really want to do, they’re going to break the rules,’ the Kentuckian said of Democrats. ‘And once you do it once, it’s over.’” (“McConnell: Democrats Would End The Filibuster If They Sweep On Election Day,” Semafor, 9/26/2024)

·       “‘They’re all committed to it now, because Chuck has made them take a public position. Every Democratic challenger, I’m told, running for the Senate is taking the same position,’ McConnell said. ‘I think they fully intend to do it if they can.’” (“McConnell: Democrats Would End The Filibuster If They Sweep On Election Day,” Semafor, 9/26/2024)

LEADER McCONNELL: “What [Democrats] want to do is break the institution in order to achieve what they want to achieve.” (“Harris-Backed Filibuster Change Would ‘Break’ The Senate, McConnell Says,” Politico, 9/26/2024)

·       “McConnell, delivering some of his most pointed and substantial criticism of a Harris proposal since she became a presidential candidate, said that the proposal would spell the end of the filibuster altogether, explaining that her suggested exemption for Roe would put the chamber down a steep and slippery slope. ‘There’s no way you can have a minor carve-out’ for one issue, he said. ‘Because then you’ll come up with the next idea that’s more important than the rule — then, practically, it’s over.’” (“Harris-Backed Filibuster Change Would ‘Break’ The Senate, McConnell Says,” Politico, 9/26/2024)

LEADER McCONNELL: ‘Then, [Democrats Will] Go After The Supreme Court’

“McConnell warned that if they adjusted the filibuster rules Democrats would then use simple-majority votes to entrench their power by admitting D.C. and Puerto Rico as states, likely adding four additional Democratic senators. ‘Then,’ he said, they’ll ‘go after the Supreme Court.’ ‘So it would fundamentally, in my view, turn America to California,’ he continued. ‘And I think that is a major structural change to the country.’” (“Harris-Backed Filibuster Change Would ‘Break’ The Senate, McConnell Says,” Politico, 9/26/2024)

This Partisan Attack Would Obviously Invite ‘Scorched Earth’ Retaliation

“McConnell has vowed in recent years a ‘scorched earth’ response from the GOP that would allow for ‘zero input’ from Democrats if they nix the filibuster.” (“Senate Democrats Think Risk Of Nixing Filibuster For Abortion Is Worth The Reward,” The Hill, 9/29/2024)

·       SEN. KYRSTEN SINEMA (I-AZ): “To state the supremely obvious, eliminating the filibuster to codify Roe v Wade also enables a future Congress to ban all abortion nationwide. What an absolutely terrible, shortsighted idea.” (Sen. Sinema, @kyrstensinema, Twitter, 9/24/2024)

Vice President Kamala Harris Said She Wants To Lead Democrats In An Assault On Minority Rights In The Senate

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL EDITORIAL BOARD: “Kamala Harris is still keeping most of her agenda incognito, but she gave a strong hint about its direction on Tuesday when she blessed the Democratic plan to blow up the Senate’s filibuster rule. This would turn the Senate into the House for the purposes of passing legislation, which means a wide open door for progressive priorities. … She’s couching this procedural coup as related only to imposing a national abortion law on all 50 states. But anyone paying attention knows that’s a ruse. Once the 60-vote filibuster rule ends for one piece of non-budget legislation, it will end for everything.” (Editorial, “Harris Wants the Senate Filibuster Gone,” The Wall Street Journal, 9/24/2024)

·       “Chuck Schumer, the Senate Majority Leader, recently said he wants to break the filibuster for a national abortion law and pass a bill that would impose California-style voting rules on all 50 states. Good-bye voter identification, and hello nationwide ballot harvesting. It won’t stop there. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse says he wants to break the filibuster to restructure the Supreme Court. Sen. Bernie Sanders has recently given up on his former institutional objections and now favors 51 votes to pass his proposals. Every interest group in the Democratic coalition will demand that its priorities pass with 51 votes too. Think statehood for the District of Columbia. And think Big Labor’s PRO Act that would ban right-to-work laws nationwide, among other ideas that would normally require bipartisan majorities to pass the Senate.” (Editorial, “Harris Wants the Senate Filibuster Gone,” The Wall Street Journal, 9/24/2024)

·       “Mr. Schumer said recently that he’ll have enough votes to change the filibuster rule if Democrats win 50 Senate seats. If they also take the House and White House in November, Vice President Tim Walz would become the 51st vote to break the 60-vote rule and ram through whatever Democrats want. With Mr. Manchin and Arizona’s Kyrsten Sinema both gone in January, don’t expect another Democrat to stand against the progressive crowd. That’s especially true now that Ms. Harris has urged them on. Her filibuster stand gives her secret agenda away.” (Editorial, “Harris Wants the Senate Filibuster Gone,” The Wall Street Journal, 9/24/2024)

VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS: “I’ve been very clear, I think we should eliminate the filibuster for Roe, and get us to the point where 51 votes would be what we need to actually put back in law the protections for reproductive freedom and for the ability of every person and every woman to make decisions about their own body and not have their government tell them what to do…” (“Harris Says She Would Support Ending The Filibuster To Bring Back Roe V. Wade,” National Public Radio, 9/24/2024)

·       “Her announcement echoes that of Biden, who also called for eliminating the filibuster to advance abortion legislation after the Dobbs decision.” (“Filibuster’s Future, Emergency Abortions Fuel Senate Debate,” Roll Call, 9/24/2024)

FLASHBACK: Harris Has Previously Indicated Her Eagerness To Eliminate The Filibuster To Pass A Far-Left Agenda

THEN-SEN. KAMALA HARRIS (D-CA): “I am prepared to get rid of the filibuster to pass a Green New Deal.” (CNN, 9/04/2019)

·       AXIOS: “Now, Harris’ campaign declined to say if she would push for such a reform if she is president. … Asked if Harris supports more filibuster carve-outs, the campaign did not respond. The campaign declined to make Harris available for an interview about her position on the filibuster and the Green New Deal.” (“Harris Silent On Nixing Filibuster For Green New Deal,” Axios, 9/26/2024)

Leading Senate Democrats Keep Saying They Want To Destroy Senate Rules And Norms By Eliminating The Filibuster

“[Democrat] Leaders are thinking big, cautiously. Sitting down with Rachael [Bade] at the Grill, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer discussed plans for a scenario that just a month ago seemed awfully remote: a Democratic governing trifecta. Yes, it’s still a long shot, especially if you believe the recent Senate polls out of Montana. But Schumer was not shy about suggesting that the legislative filibuster may be at risk for at least some pieces of high-profile legislation.” (Politico’s “Playbook,” 8/20/2024)

·       “Now Schumer is predicting more success: ‘We came close last time, as you remember, we couldn’t change the rules, but I think there would be a consensus in my caucus to try and do that.’” (Politico’s “Playbook,” 8/20/2024)

·       “While he was careful to note any action would be subject to the whims of his caucus, Schumer said Democrats would ‘make sure democracy is preserved’ in a reference to the party’s big voting rights and campaign reform bills, whose progress was blocked early in the Biden administration after centrist Sens. Joe Manchin (W.V.) and Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.) balked at killing the filibuster.” (Politico’s “Playbook,” 8/20/2024)

“Senate Democrats concede there is considerable risk to doing away with the filibuster to codify abortion rights, but also suggest they are likely to try to do so if they get the chance in 2025…. Democrats say codifying abortion rights and other key legislative priorities is worth the risk.” (“Senate Democrats Think Risk Of Nixing Filibuster For Abortion Is Worth The Reward,” The Hill, 9/29/2024)

·       “Vice President Harris’s call to do away with the 60-vote threshold to codify Roe v. Wade brought the issue back to the forefront for Democrats.” (“Senate Democrats Think Risk Of Nixing Filibuster For Abortion Is Worth The Reward,” The Hill, 9/29/2024)

SENATE MAJORITY WHIP DICK DURBIN (D-IL): “As far as I’m concerned, we should be discussing the rules going forward.” (“Senate Democrats Think Risk Of Nixing Filibuster For Abortion Is Worth The Reward,” The Hill, 9/29/2024)

·       DURBIN: “Sign me up for an honest-to-goodness conversation about reforming the filibuster beyond one or two [issues], voting rights and reproductive rights. I think we’ve allowed the filibuster rule to eat the business of the Senate…. If we’re going to be a functioning legislature, we’ve got to change some fundamentals.” (The Hill, 9/26/2024)

“Dem WA Sen Murray on Harris wanting a filibuster cave-out to codify Roe: I am confident I and many of our colleagues will do exactly as Vice President Harris said today…” (Chad Pergram, @ChadPergram, Twitter, 9/24/2024)

“[T]he majority of Senate Democrats support eliminating the filibuster, and if Democrats maintain control of the Senate they may also be closer next year to making that change. ‘If we have the majority in the Senate, we will also have the majority to codify Roe versus Wade. I’m planning on it,’ Sen. Christopher S. Murphy, D-Conn., said on Tuesday. ‘So this is, this is up to the voters now,’ he added.” (“Filibuster’s Future, Emergency Abortions Fuel Senate Debate,” Roll Call, 9/24/2024)

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA): “We would have Roe v. Wade as law of the land, comprehensive immigration reform, better gun safety laws. And we’d just be warming up…. So why keep this hanger-oner?” (“Senate Democrats Think Risk Of Nixing Filibuster For Abortion Is Worth The Reward,” The Hill, 9/29/2024)

‘Any Future Democratic Majority Might Be More Amenable … To Eliminate The 60-Vote Threshold For Most Legislation’

“Democrats’ attempts to eliminate the Senate filibuster have come up short in recent years. Eliminating the filibuster was a rallying cry for a number of Democratic Senate candidates in 2020. But the party took the Senate by only a narrow margin, and Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona were key players in blocking fellow Democrats’ efforts to remove the barrier in the early years of the Biden administration.” (“Democratic Senate Hopeful Proposes ‘Pausing’ Filibuster For Abortion And Voting Rights,” NBC News, 5/01/2024)

·       “Manchin and Sinema, who later left the party and became an independent, have both since announced they will not seek re-election this year. That might help tip the Senate back into Republican control, but it also means any future Democratic majority might be more amenable to rules changes to eliminate the 60-vote threshold for most legislation.” (“Democratic Senate Hopeful Proposes ‘Pausing’ Filibuster For Abortion And Voting Rights,” NBC News, 5/01/2024)

‘This Is Not A “What If” Scenario’: Nearly Every Senate Democrat Voted Less Than Two Years Ago To Break Senate Rules In An Attempt To End The Filibuster

SEN. KYRSTEN SINEMA (I-AZ): “The Senate voted to keep/eliminate the filibuster on Jan 19, 2022. Every senator in this story VOTED that day. This is not a ‘what if’ scenario. We are all already on record on this question. You can’t rewrite history.” (Sen. Sinema, @kyrstensinema, Twitter, 9/26/2024)

“In 2022, facing pressure from Democrats, [President Joe Biden] backed select filibuster carve-outs to pass voting rights and abortion rights legislation. Both attempts failed as centrist Democrats, like Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, opposed them.” (“Harris Silent On Nixing Filibuster For Green New Deal,” Axios, 9/26/2024)

·       PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: “We have to codify Roe v. Wade in the law, and the way to do that is to make sure the Congress votes to do that…. And if the filibuster gets in the way, it’s like voting rights, we provide an exception for this, or an exception to the filibuster for this action.” (“Biden, Chiding Court, Endorses Ending Filibuster to Codify Abortion Rights,” 6/30/2022)

43 sitting Senate Democrats already voted to use the nuclear option and break Senate rules to end the legislative filibuster. (H.R. 5746, Roll Call Vote #10: Ruling of the chair sustained 52-48: D 2-46; R 50-0; I 0-2, 1/19/2022)

·       Several Democrats who voted to smash the institution of the Senate are asking voters for another term, including Sens. Jon Tester (D-MT), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Bob Casey (D-PA), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Tim Kaine (D-VA). (H.R. 5746, Roll Call Vote #10: Ruling of the chair sustained 52-48: D 2-46; R 50-0; I 0-2, 1/19/2022; Tester, Brown, Casey, Rosen, Baldwin, and Kaine voted Nay)

·       “[Sen. Jon Tester] also supported filibuster changes tailored to voting rights legislation. His position on requiring a talking filibuster would put the onus on the minority party to bottle up a vote on restoring Roe.” (Semafor, 9/24/2024)

Every Prominent Democrat Candidate Looking To Join The Senate Has Expressed Their Eagerness To Fundamentally Wreck The Institution By Eliminating The Filibuster

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): “If we’re going to make significant reforms to protect a democracy, we’re going to have to get rid of the filibuster … And I would trade wild swings in policy because the majority in the Senate can actually get things passed over the democracy-defeating stalemate that we have with the filibuster.” (“Schiff Would Abolish Filibuster, End The Electoral College In His Pro-Democracy Plan,” Politico, 1/12/2024)

·       “California Senate candidate and Congressmember Adam Schiff is calling for a major overhaul of American institutions, including getting rid of the Electoral College, expanding the Supreme Court and eliminating the filibuster.” (“Schiff Would Abolish Filibuster, End The Electoral College In His Pro-Democracy Plan,” Politico, 1/12/2024)

REP. RUBEN GALLEGO (D-AZ): “Enough is enough. End the filibuster.” (Rep. Ruben Gallego, @RepRubenGallego, Twitter, 10/20/2021)

·       GALLEGO: “The filibuster is a relic of the Jim Crow era that has been used to stifle progress for generations now. Abolish it.” (Rep. Ruben Gallego, @RepRubenGallego, Twitter, 12/29/2021)

REP. ELISSA SLOTKIN (D-MI): “Yeah, I think the filibuster, as it is now being used, needs to go.” (“Leading Dem Senate Candidate: The Filibuster Rule ‘Needs To Go,’” MSNBC, 3/02/2023)

·       SLOTKIN: “The idea that a couple, a handful of senators can just stop bills from even coming to the floor and getting an up-or-down vote, I just don’t think that makes sense.” (“Leading Dem Senate Candidate: The Filibuster Rule ‘Needs To Go,’” MSNBC, 3/02/2023)

REP. COLIN ALLRED (D-TX): “We cannot allow the filibuster to get in the way of the work we need to do to protect our democracy.” (Rep. Allred, Press Release, 1/13/2022)

·       “Allred said he would support abolishing the filibuster — which generally requires the support of 60 senators before action can be taken — but acknowledged the political difficulty of doing so because a handful of Democrats and most Republicans insist that the filibuster encourages bipartisanship.” (“Democrats Colin Allred, Roland Gutierrez Draw Distinctions On Key Issues As They Target Sen. Ted Cruz In 2024,” The Texas Tribune, 8/09/2023)

REP. DEBBIE MUCARSEL-POWELL (D-FL): “Democracy is 50-plus-one, and for certain issues, I am very much in favor of pausing the filibuster and voting for a woman’s right to choose to codify Roe v. Wade…” (“Democratic Senate Hopeful Proposes ‘Pausing’ Filibuster For Abortion And Voting Rights,” NBC News, 5/01/2024)

·       “Mucarsel-Powell said she would also support undoing the filibuster, which requires 60 Senate votes to advance most legislation, to pass federal voting rights protections and gun measures.” (“Democratic Senate Hopeful Proposes ‘Pausing’ Filibuster For Abortion And Voting Rights,” NBC News, 5/01/2024)

REP. ANDY KIM (D-NJ): “Process and policy, you can’t separate the two…. In order for me to pass women’s reproductive rights in America, we have to have filibuster reform.” (“Nobody Saw Andy Kim Coming. That’s What He Was Counting On.,” The New York Times, 4/27/2024)

·       “Kim was eager to note that he is in favor of reforming the Senate filibuster.” (“Andy Kim, Tammy Murphy Make Their Cases To Democrats At Monmouth University Forum,” NorthJersey.com, 2/05/2024)

·       Endorsement from radical far-left group Indivisible: “[Andy Kim’s] commitment to ending the filibuster and getting things done in the Senate -- they’re exactly what we need more of in Washington.” (“Andy Kim,” Indivisible Website, Accessed 8/20/2024)

PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY EXECUTIVE ANGELA ALSOBROOKS (D-MD): “As Maryland’s next Senator, I will not let the filibuster impede my work. I will vote to codify abortion rights. I will vote to ban the sale of assault weapons. I will vote to abolish the filibuster.” (Angela Alsobrooks, @AlsobrooksForMD, Twitter, 5/28/2024)

·       ALSOBROOKS: “For far too long, the filibuster has prevented real progress on some of the most challenging issues facing our country. When Maryland elects me to the Senate, I will vote to abolish the filibuster.” (Angela Alsobrooks, @AlsobrooksForMD, Twitter, 8/14/2024)

REP. LISA BLUNT ROCHESTER (D-DE): “The filibuster is an archaic tool created to hinder America’s progress. As Delaware’s next United States Senator, you can count on my vote to abolish the filibuster once and for all.” (Rep. Blunt Rochester, @LisaBRochester, Twitter, 7/20/2023)

If Democrats Succeed In Breaking The Institution Of The Senate, Their First Target Will Be Destroying The Institution Of The Supreme Court

One Far-Left Democrat Introduced A Radical New Partisan Court-Packing Bill Just Last Week

“Senate Democrats are ramping up pressure against the Supreme Court just weeks before Election Day, introducing a bill that would expand the number of justices from nine to 15 …” (“Democrats Up Pressure On Supreme Court With Bill Adding Six Justices,” Washington Examiner, 9/27/2024)

·       “A sweeping bill introduced by a Democratic senator Wednesday would greatly increase the size of the Supreme Court, make it harder for the justices to overturn laws, require justices to undergo audits and remove roadblocks for high court nominations. The legislation by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) is one of the most ambitious proposals to remake [the] high court …” (“Sweeping Bill To Overhaul Supreme Court Would Add Six Justices,” The Washington Post, 9/26/2024)

“Wyden’s bill represents one of the most ambitious proposals to date as Democrats fume over the 6-3 Republican-appointed majority on the high court, installed with the help of former President Donald Trump and then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).” (“Democrats Up Pressure On Supreme Court With Bill Adding Six Justices,” Washington Examiner, 9/27/2024)

The Bill Includes Deeply And Clearly Unconstitutional Attempts By Congress To Dictate The Rules Of The Supreme Court

“The bill would also require a ruling by two-thirds of the high court and the circuit courts of appeals, rather than a simple majority, to overturn a law passed by Congress…. Another measure would allow a two-thirds vote of the court to force a fellow justice to recuse from a case.” (“Sweeping Bill To Overhaul Supreme Court Would Add Six Justices,” The Washington Post, 9/26/2024)

“Another provision in Wyden’s bill would expand the number of federal judicial circuits from 13 to 15, adding more than 100 district court judges and more than 60 appellate-level judges.” (“Sweeping Bill To Overhaul Supreme Court Would Add Six Justices,” The Washington Post, 9/26/2024)

This Is Only The Latest In A Series Of Nakedly Partisan Court-Packing Bills Introduced By Senate Democrats

“Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Alex Padilla (D-CA) today introduced new legislation, the Supreme Court Biennial Appointments and Term Limits Act, to establish 18-year term limits and regularized appointments for Supreme Court justices.  Senators Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Peter Welch (D-VT), and Brian Schatz (D-HI) also cosponsored the legislation. Under the senators’ legislation, a new justice would take the bench every two years and spend 18 years participating in all Supreme Court cases, after which the justice would be limited to hearing a small number of constitutionally required cases.” (Sen. Whitehouse, Press Release, 10/19/2023)

·       9 Senate Democrats are cosponsoring this legislation, including five members of the Judiciary Committee. (S.3096, 118^th Congress)

In May of 2023, Sens. Ed Markey (D-MA) Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Tina Smith (D-MN) reintroduced their radical bill to pack the Supreme Court, S. 1616. (S.1616, 118^th Congress)

·       “Markey and other Democrats previously introduced the legislation roughly two years ago to create a 13-justice Supreme Court...” (??“Democrats Reintroduce Supreme Court Expansion Legislation,” The Hill, 5/16/2023)

65 House Democrats also introduced a companion bill to pack the Supreme Court, H.R. 3422. (H.R.3422, 118^th Congress)

·       Among the Democrats cosponsoring the bill are two candidates for the U.S. Senate, Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Andy Kim (D-NJ). (H.R.3422, 118th Congress)

Kamala Harris Has Also Endorsed This Partisan Assault On The Supreme Court

VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS: “[T]here is a clear crisis of confidence facing the Supreme Court as its fairness has been called into question… That is why President Biden and I are calling on Congress to pass important reforms – [including] imposing term limits for Justices’ active service …” (Bloomberg’s Josh Wingrove, @josh_wingrove, Twitter, 7/29/2024)

THEN-SEN. KAMALA HARRIS (D-CA): “We are on the verge of a crisis of confidence in the Supreme Court… We have to take this challenge head on, and everything is on the table to do that.” (“2020 Dems Warm To Expanding Supreme Court,” Politico, 3/18/2020)

·       HARRIS: “I am open to that discussion… No, just I’m open to it. I’m absolutely open to it.” (The New York Times, Accessed 9/13/2019)

“Sens. Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren and Kirsten Gillibrand told POLITICO they would not rule out expanding the Supreme Court if elected president, showcasing a new level of interest in the Democratic field on an issue that has until recently remained on the fringes of debate.” (“2020 Dems Warm To Expanding Supreme Court,” Politico¸ 3/18/2019)

·       “Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris said Wednesday she’s open to expanding the U.S. Supreme Court, accusing Republicans of creating a ‘crisis of confidence’ in the nation’s highest court. ‘I am interested in having that conversation,’ the California senator said in Nashua, New Hampshire, in response to a question about whether she favors adding as many as four seats to the court. ‘I’m open to this conversation about increasing the number of people on the United States Supreme Court.’” (“Kamala Harris Says She’s ‘Open’ To Expanding Supreme Court,” Bloomberg, 5/15/2019)

·       “Harris said she was open to adding more justices. ‘I think it’s a conversation that we need to have. I am open to increasing the numbers on the Supreme Court,’ she said, responding to a woman who asked about enlarging the court and prefaced her question with a complaint that McConnell ‘stole a Supreme Court seat.’ ‘The most critical issues of our lifetimes, before and in the future,’ Harris said, ‘will be decided by that United States Supreme Court.’” (“Democrats Look At Packing The Supreme Court To Pack The Vote,” CNN, 5/31/2019)

SEN. SHELDON WHITEHOUSE (D-RI): “I couldn’t be happier that they’re moving in this direction … It’s time, and I think that Vice President Harris will be completely on board and maybe even [give] a little bit more oomph.” (“Biden Keeps Democrats Guessing On Supreme Court Changes As Some Seek Input,” Washington Examiner, 7/26/2024)