Unprecedented R obstruction: Complete details for all SENATE FILIBUSTERS since Nixon's presidency

[ProgressiveEconomist]

At the imminent Democratic National COnvention in Charlotte, explaining Republican sabotage of President Obama's efforts to strengthen the economy will be very important. Right-wing media already are distorting the filibuster record (see http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014216210 ) and likely will accelerate their distortions during the next few days.

For fact-checking, where can you find complete data on the actual official record of senate filibusters?

At senate.gov are detailed records of dates, subjects, cloture roll-calls, and outcomes for all Senate filibusters since at least 1969.

Here are the summary lines from filibuster records back to 1969, along with links to the data:

91st Congress 7 cloture motions filed, Jan 03 1969 through Jan 02 1971
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/91.htm

92nd Congress 24 cloture motions filed, Jan 21 1971 through Oct 18 1972
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/92.htm

93rd Congress 44 cloture motions filed, Jan 03 1973 through Dec 20 1974
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/93.htm

94th Congress 39 cloture motions filed, Jan 14 1975 through Oct 01 1976
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/94.htm

95th Congress 23 cloture motions filed, Jan 04 1977 through Oct 15 1978
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/95.htm

96th Congress 30 cloture motions filed, Jan 15 1979 through Dec 16 1980
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/96.htm

97th Congress 31 cloture motions filed, Jan 05 1981 through Dec 23 1982
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/97.htm

98th Congress 41 cloture motions filed, Jan 03 1983 through Oct 12 1984
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/98.htm

99th Congress 41 cloture motions filed, Jan 03 1985 through Oct 18 1986
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/99.htm

100th Congress 54 cloture motions filed, Jan 06 1987 through Oct 22 1988
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/100.htm

101st Congress 38 cloture motions filed, Jan 03 1989 through Oct 28 1990
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/101.htm

102nd Congress 60 cloture motions filed, Jan 03 1991 through Oct 09 1992
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/102.htm

103rd Congress 80 cloture motions filed, Jan 05 1993 through Dec 01 1994
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/103.htm

104th Congress 82 cloture motions filed, Jan 04 1995 through Oct 04 1996
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/104.htm

105th Congress 69 cloture motions filed, Jan 07 1997 through Dec 19 1998
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/105.htm

106th Congress 71 cloture motions filed, Jan 06 1999 through Dec 15 2000
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/106.htm

107th Congress 71 cloture motions filed, Jan 03 2001 through Nov 22 2002
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/107.htm

108th Congress 62 cloture motions filed, Jan 07 2003 through Dec 08 2004
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/108.htm

109th Congress 68 cloture motions filed, Jan 04 2005 through Dec 09 2006
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/109.htm

110th Congress 139 cloture motions filed, Jan 04 2007 through Jan 02 2009
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/110.htm

111th Congress 137 cloture motions filed, Jan 03 2009 through Dec 22 2010
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/111.htm

112th Congress 104 cloture motions filed, Jan 05 2011 through Aug 03 2012 (still in progress)
http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/112.htm

Note, for example, that 2009-2010 filibusters are archived at http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/111.htm , where "111" stands for the 111th Congress.

As you can see, changing the "111", but otherwise keeping the URL identical, brings up filibuster records for another Congress.

[Tx4obama]

1. I think your 'Nate' should be 'Note.

Took me a second to realize that there isn't anyone named Nate here

[ProgressiveEconomist]

2. Thanks. Now I know at least one person is paying close attention.

[ProgressiveEconomist]

3. Did everyone notice the DOUBLING of filibusters starting after 2006

when Democrats retook the Senate (see http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2006/ )?

[davidpdx]

5. Yes

Also compare the total number of filibusters under Clinton and Bush, 302 (Clinton) to 340 (Bush)

[ProgressiveEconomist]

4. Detailed dates for the 5 mos Democrats were "filibuster-proof" in 2009-10

Chris Wallace admirers, take note:

From http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/did-the-democrats-ever-really-have-60-votes-in-the-senate-and-for-how-long/ :

"there were only two time periods during the 111th Congress when the Democrats had a 60 seat majority:

--From July 7. 2009 (when Al Franken was officially seated as the Senator from Minnesota after the last of Norm Coleman’s challenges came to an end) to August 25, 2009 (when Ted Kennedy died, although Kennedy’s illness had kept him from voting for several weeks before that date at least); and

--From September 25, 2009 (when Paul Kirk was appointed to replace Kennedy) to February 4, 2010 (when Scott Brown took office after defeating Martha Coakley);

For one day in September 2009, Republicans lacked 40 votes due to the resignation of Mel Martinez, who was replaced the next day by George LeMieux

So, to the extent there was a filibuster proof majority in the Senate it lasted during two brief periods which lasted for a total of just over five months when counted altogether (and Congress was in its traditional summer recess for most of the July-August 2009 time frame).

It’s important to keep this fact in mind when discussing what could have happened in the 111th Congress ..."

[davidpdx]

6. The best comparison is to take the first term of Clinton and Bush's Administrations

and compare it to Obama's. The number of filibuster's during Obama's first term is higher than either.

Clinton 162
Bush 133
Obama 241 (and counting..)

It is unlikely but possible that it could equal or exceed Clinton's and Bush's first term combined.

[ProgressiveEconomist]

7. Great idea! Though perhaps not the absolute "BEST" comparison

of Republican and Democratic filibusters.

Remember, Clinton lost control of Congress in 1994, his first midterm election. Filibusters take on a different interpretation when the President's party has leadership of the Senate than when the other party leads the Senate. Just look at the party affiliations of Senators filing for cloture. Most cloture motions were filed by a Democrat (Mitchell, ME) in 1993-94, while in 1995-6 most were filed by a Republican (Lott, MS).

Most cloture attempts under President Obama have been filed by Democrat Reid (NV), both before and after the 2010 midterms. Thus I would submit as possibly the "best" comparison filibusters under just the first two years of three Presidencies.

Also, as one measure of pure obstruction, I would take the number of filibusters of non-judicial nominees during those two years. Large numbers of filibusters of Presidential nominations to important positions in a new administration signify an attempt to sabotage the WH. Why shouldn't a President get his own first choices of executive officials?

Here's my "best" comparison:


Congress _Years_ _Filibusters_ _Non-judicial nominee filibusters_ _Other filibusters_ _President_

103rd 1993-1994 080 24 056 Clinton

107th 2001-2002 071 01 070 GW Bush

111th 2009-2010 137 22 115 Obama

Note that Republicans filibustered Bill Clinton's non-judicial nominees even more than Barack Obama's. What accounts for the more than doubling of other filibusters from the first 2 years of Clinton to the 1st two years of Obama? Filibusters of President Obama's economic program. 21 bills filibustered in 2009-10 had the words, "jobs", "employment", "unemployment", or "small business" in their titles. Many more had the word "financial" in the title. Economic sabotage is the really UNPRECEDENTED part of Republican obstruction of President Obama.