Republicans Trying to Bully Their Way
The filibuster is interesting, to say the least. The Republicans are complaining about the Democrats blocking their judicial nominees. Well, isn’t that what the filibuster is for? Doesn’t it exist as a part of our checks and balances? Isn’t that what makes the United States a democracy and not a dictatorship?
A filibuster is a term used for an extended debate in the Senate, which has the effect of preventing a vote. Senate rules contain no motion to force a vote. A vote occurs only once debate ends. There is no reason for the Republicans to force this vote through.
The Democrats have the right to debate these appointees and they are taking advantage of that. Under these circumstances it is important for both sides to approach the disagreement with a multilateral approach instead of a unilateral (cause we said so) approach.
The Republicans claim that the Democrats have an obligation to procure a vote and stop holding action up in the Senate. What happens if you are a Dem and you are completely disgusted with the extremely, conservative judges that the Bush administration would like to appoint? As a Democrat you’re well aware that the votes will pass through the Senate, so the only thing to do is filibuster. The Republicans want to strike a compromise, so they should be the ones to go back to the drawing board and try to find some appointees that are not so, I don’t know, glaringly extreme? This way we can all be happy. Oh yeah, except for the Republicans who want things their way or no way at all. It seems to me that if they really cared about compromise they would try to find appointees that appeal to people other than the religious right. The Democrats exist in the Senate for a reason. Their purpose is to represent a portion of the population of this country. The Republicans are simply not allowing the minority, in this case Senate Democrats, to have an opinion. Going ahead with these controversial appointees will divide our country even further.
Due to the lack of resolution in the Senate the Republicans threaten to resort to the “nuclear option”. Basically they want to change Senate rules to get their way. They can do this, but it would be rather foolish. One day the Republicans might find themselves on the other side of the fence, when Democrats are in office and in the majority. It’s not wise to enable any one group to have complete control. Once checks and balances can be changed, in order to bolster various political convictions, the US will become chaotic.
The rules apply to everyone. Unless you’re a god-fearing,wholesome, Republican, American Senator. The Republican party’s willingness to change ethic rules in order to preserve Tom Delay is another way that the party illustrates their devious agenda for control. Once again the Republicans find themselves to be above the law. This issue was
probably evident to ordinary, republican citizens, whether they wanted to acknowledge it or not.
It is like when someone at the dinner table has a bit of food stuck in his or her teeth but no one wants to mention it.
Let’s touch on religion as an avenue for world domination. Through the sensitive topic of moral beliefs the Right can coerce everyday, churchgoers to support platforms, that if put in to effect, could end up leading to the destruction of civil liberties. First of all, what does Christianity have to do with American politics? This should be as simple as the separation of church and state. We happen to have a Christian influenced administration. What if we had a Hindu influenced administration? Would we, as a country, be OK with Hindu beliefs weaving its way through our public policy? Not that I have a problem with Hinduism at all but, of course not, so why are we OK with Christianity influencing our government? Some people, in this country, are not Christian, yet we feel just fine with ostracizing them from decision-making and treating them as though they do not exist.
The Right has been blustering this country long enough. Democrats should be sticking up to them, letting them know they’re still here! Everyone is quick to jump down the left’s throat, accusing them of holding up the Senate and hurting the way our government is run. If a filibuster is part of the governmental process then how is it holding up the process? One thing often overlooked is that if it is part of the process, it can’t hold the process up.
The Republicans are the only group that should be held liable for damage. They are forcing their control whether the people of this country want it or not. They are not representing the minority and they consistently outline their inability to compromise or play by the rules.
