I think we are very near a "tipping point" for our party and our nation.

[Atticus]

The Democratic Party WON the last election. (Some would say we've won the last five elections)

We have sizable majorities in both houses of Congress and, of course, a Democratic president.

"Change" was the explicit theme and promise of the '08 campaign. The President and Congress took office buoyed by the support of a solid majority who fully expected that the people they had voted for, had worked for, had sent scarce dollars to, would DO WHAT THEY SAID THEY WOULD DO. You can say that was naive of them, but then, that naivete was not just accepted during the campaign, it was encouraged.

It is now apparent that 1.) the Republicans intend to stop ANYTHING proposed by any Democrat, and 2.) the filibuster---actually the "technical" or silent filibuster---is their primary weapon of choice.

If Democrats do not DO WHATEVER IS NECESSARY in order to DO WHAT THEY SAID THEY WOULD DO, they will lose both houses of Congress in 2010 and, quite possibly, the presidency. They must get rid of the filibuster.

Since they didn't do it with 51 votes at the beginning of the session, they will have to do it the hard way: make the damn Republican obstructionists stand in front of C-SPAN's cameras for hour after hour spewing irrelevant nonsense in an effort to block, say, a Treasury nominee they have "on hold". (The "NATION" magazine I received today has an excellent article, "Bring On The Filibuster" by Thomas Geoghegan)

Once the craven babblers have totally disgusted the average citizen with their naked partisan extremism, call for a vote on the Harkin bill, which allows a 60 vote requirement on the first cloture vote, but then losers the number of votes required to 57 on the second cloture attempt, 54 on the third and, finally, a simple majority on the fourth vote for cloture.

If the Democrats don't kill the filibuster, they will not pass meaningful health care reform. They will not pass a quality jobs bill or cap and trade or---much of anything.

In schoolyard terms, it's "put up or shut up" time.

[pinto]

1. The Constitutional Option to Change Senate Rules and Procedures (Harvard Jour of Law)

http://www.law.harvard.edu/students/orgs/jlpp/Gold_Gupta_JLPP_article.pdf

Interesting piece on the history of the filibuster, cloture, and Senate procedures. Well annotated and a comprehensive look at debate and decision making processes in the Senate. ~ pinto

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

2. I agree. It's not the Dems fault the GOP is going the obstruction route, BUT...

it IS their responsibility to respond effectively.

[FirstLight]

3. I am thinking of something more revolutionary...

a true Progressive Party, almost breaking away from the 2 party system altogether... like the antithesis of the teabaggers.

Vote out ALL Incumbents, across the board...

Vote IN all unknowns, specifically those who have proven track record in public and community work on the GROUND level, limited public figures, even authors or entertainers who have gone above & beyond to work WITH communities and REVITLIZE the lives of REAL PEOPLE.

THAT is the track record we need to be holding these asshats to.

"What work have you done On the Street...?"

[DURHAM D]

4. The problem is not the opposition - the problem is the Democrats.

I no longer recognize a party I once thought was better than the other guys. Now, they are just self-obstructionists.

[ShockediSay]

5. The problem is the LOBBYISTS. The more they can gum up the works

the more money they make. THEY have thrived in this recession.

http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2010/02/federal-lobbying-soars-in-2009.html

"Federal Lobbying Climbs in 2009 as Lawmakers Execute Aggressive Congressional Agenda"

Why do we subsidize this influence peddling, bribery and extortion by making lobbyist fees tax deductible? It's like giving the Mafia a tax deduction for machine guns AND the tax deductions increase our deficit.

[DURHAM D]

7. Sorry - lobbyists don't vote. Its the Democrats. nt

[Donnachaidh]

8. are the lobbyists holding guns to our reps heads?

If these people had ETHICS and a sense of morality they could tell the lobbyists to take a flying leap off a rolling doughnut.

But they don't. They do backroom deals in the morning and then have press conferences filled with words like *transparency* and *change*.....

Elmer Gantry would be proud!

[ShockediSay]

11. Spoken like ludicrously obvious Lobbyist shills-BS!!!

Same paid-for talking point propaganda memes, same BS, all the time.

[Atticus]

14. From "Molly"---

If you can’t take their money, drink their whiskey, screw their women, and vote against ‘em anyway, you don’t belong in the Legislature” is a quote by Molly Ivins (1944-2007) that’s often attributed to Texas politics. The saying was first used by Jesse Unruh (1922-1987) in California politics, cited in print from May 1961. Unruh was talking about lobbyist gifts.

[ShockediSay]

15. Molly/Atticus: You sound like an open minded contributor

of intelligent points to consider

Can any congressperson run a serious campaign w/out lobbyist "campaign contributions?"

Can congresspersons spend more time with the persons who voted for them, than the time they spend w/ lobbyists?

Who do you think runs congress - voters or lobbyists?

[AlinPA]

19. Threats, maybe. Blackmail, maybe.

[Junkdrawer]

22. Self Delete - Posted wrong spot.

[lonestarnot]

6. How many of them do not get that?

[galileoreloaded]

9. 50% analysis at best. n/t

[eridani]

10. Dems better throw the public some populist red meat

--or the Repubs will do their fake populism and push us right over the cliff.

[harun]

12. They won't and they are going to get ROUTED in the next election.

[kenny blankenship]

20. At this point, there's nothing they can do to save themselves. They blew it.

They failed and the People are no longer listening or looking to Democrats or to Chancellor Brüning Whatshisname, the moron who negotiates against himself. Their many failures to act--infuriating as they are--may actually be less unpopular than their few listable actions. They all tried to "triangulate" at the same time - to posture as the "reasonable moderate", to play the "centrist" against an invisible, unrepresented left and an unconcerned disengaged right. But since they were all doing it there was nothing to push away from and contrast with. The right would not break ranks and would not help Democrats advance an agenda that was not in their interest (only Democrats do that). And the left - there is no left only "moderates"! Thus the Democratic Party languished and died of a sedentary circulatory disease. It was elected to both houses of Congress and the Presidency in a landslide, and then it just lay there like a bunch of dumb rocks until people tired of the stink covered it up with earth.

[Echo In Light]

13. "America has one political party with two right wings" - Gore Vidal

[SoCalDem]

16. People want dems to play hardball with repubs, but the people they elect

mostly just want to play-ball with republicans, and are afraid of them.

[AlinPA]

17. We are going to need that filibuster after this next election for U.S. senate.

[Atticus]

18. "We've got to keep our powder dry!" Check. nt

[SoCalDem]

25. Why? When repubs were in charge, dems gave them everything they wanted anyway

and even when dems "took over", they STILL gave W whatever he wanted, so they would not be called names:puke:

[Vidar]

21. K&R.

[Junkdrawer]

23. In America, you get two choices...

1.) The Big Banking/Big Oil Party

or

2.) The Big Oil/Big Banking Party

An remember: if one party doesn't address your needs, you can always throw the crooks out and go with the other party.

[Kablooie]

24. I wish we were near tipping point but no. We are no where near it yet.

We are in the bitch about it but do nothing phase.

Not until a large percentage of the population see abject poverty and starvation right around the corner will anything begin to be done. People don't seriously act until actual danger is right on their doorstep.

People don't sacrifice to have a possibly better future. They sacrifice to prevent absolute destruction.

We have lots of inconveniences right now and a few are thrown into abject poverty but not enough to upset the balance. It is so heavily weighted on the privileged side that it will take years of Dickens like living conditions before the people, as a group, stand up and demand that something be done.

Unfortunately that is one of the sad lessons of history.