“The need to gather 60 votes to end filibuster requires compromise and a middle ground. Not only does it empower the minority, but it has also helped keep us focused, promotes the stability and predictability that are essential for investing in people, in capital and into the future, ”Romney, a moderate Republican representing Utah, wrote in
work published in The Washington Postadding that abandoning the filibuster “would significantly change the special and decisive role of the U.S. Senate.”
Romney’s comments come as attention is once again drawn to the Senate as Democrats look for ways to quickly pass some key legislative elements, such as the Voting Rights Act. Although two key moderate Democrats have expressed opposition to the filibuster change,
President Joe Biden said earlier this month that he was ready to pass legislation on voting rights, giving up his previous support for maintaining the rule.
“The Democrats ‘last justification for eliminating filibuster is Republicans’ unwillingness to pass party electoral reform legislation. Democrats have passed these laws several times over the years, almost always without seeking Republican involvement in shaping them,” Romney wrote.
“Whenever legislation is drafted and sponsored exclusively by one party, it is clearly a frivolous biased effort aimed at communicating and promoting that party’s base. Any serious legislative effort is negotiated and sponsored by both parties.”
All Democrats should agree to such a change, as Democrats have the smallest majority in the Senate.
Romney scolded Democrats for making a mistake on the issue and rejected the claim that filibuster was racist, especially in
This argument was used by former President Barack Obama after having previously defended the filibuster. The 2012 senator and Republican presidential candidate wrote that Obama’s apparent reversal was “so disturbing and deeply disappointing”.
Romney also suggested that changing the filibuster rules could turn Democrats, saying they could use it against them if Republicans retook control of Congress next year and former President Donald Trump ran for re-election in 2024 and won.
“Have Democrats been thinking about what it would mean for Trump to be completely unlimited, with the Democratic minority having no power? If Democrats now eliminate the filibuster, they – and the state – may soon be very sorry,” he wrote. .
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