Two items have come up in the early days of the Biden presidency that have caught my eye. The first is the tussle over the filibuster. Mitch McConnell was insisting on preserving it when the Dems took over, but it looks like they worked out a behind the scenes deal and pressed on. Now I’m reading a NY Times article speculating on progressives grumbling but holding their fire on eliminating the filibuster. It seems Joe Biden is in favor of keeping it, but they’re convinced that a) he’s a dinosaur for doing it and b) he’ll come around soon enough once the GOP starts blocking his agenda.
But this is the point. If being in the majority in Congress is a blank check for passing whatever you like, then why even have the means to debate? Biden is right because preserving the filibuster is critical to our democracy’s survival. The filibuster should be guaranteeing that our legislators do the hard work of hammering out laws that work for as many people as they can. Jamming majority votes down our throats only leads to acrimony and constant bickering (and I’m sure violence somewhere down the line once a faction becomes frustrated by the seeming mob rule of a congressional majority). Lawmakers no longer appeal to the moderates in their parties because they’re fairly safe votes. They seem to only be courting the extremes because they’re afraid of losing those votes if they don’t toe the line.
So when a voting rights act come up, they’re saying if it doesn’t pass, then we’ve got to dump the filibuster. Why? Because one side is so convinced that the other is filled with unreasonable racists that they’re unwilling to accept that maybe some of them have legitimate reasons for their positions. And tell me, where is accusing anyone who disagrees with you of being a racist going to get you?
What they’re really saying is “we’re not willing to do the hard work of crafting a law that will appeal to 60 Senators.” They don’t believe in moderation. You’re either with us or against us – and this is what makes losing the filibuster that much more frightening. The moderate block is only as effective as their ability to force debate.
Is the age of compromise over? Easy to say right after an election you win. But in two years, you lose and the opposition takes over and passes whatever they want. And on and on it goes. You might think you’re breaking congressional gridlock, but then you get these wild swings in the electorate undoing whatever you did every two years. It’s the inability or lack of desire to put in the work. It’s laziness.
And so is the second issue: the use of Executive Orders to govern.
I’ve seen some concern with this, because Joe Biden came in with a slew of them in the first days of his presidency. And that slew demonstrated beautifully the futility and stupidity of the overuse of EOs. Because most of his orders were simply undoing the orders of the previous president. And the next president might do the same to him.
Personally, I’m mixed about this. I don’t mind the use of EOs to reorder things and set them on the path for which the man was elected, but I agree with the Times editorial board saying “Ease Up on the Executive Actions, Joe.” Sure, set some things right, but start working with Congress to get things solidified in law. But…you know…laziness. Congress has forfeited its role and prefers grandstanding. They’ve become the definition of dysfunctional.
Sadly, it seems they’ve become too lazy to get the job done.