They had both houses, but they also had, in the Senate, "democrat" from Montana, Max Baucus, who had taken more money from the pharmaceutical industry than any other member of Congress. Baucus would not let the ACA get out of committee intact with the public option included. Then as soon as it was finally passed without a single Republican vote, the Republicans went to work on it to wreck it in any way they could. The lesson learned: Get rid of the filibuster, get your agenda passed and let the public decide whether you've done a good job at the midterm election. Be open to compromise but not to a wrecking ball. If the opposing party is only interested in inserting poison pills in your legislation then ignore them, and press forward without them.
No problem. There is only one party that needs the filibuster, and even the talking filibuster is not sufficient for them. It's the Republicans. And they need it to stop the Senate from doing anything other than protecting the wealthy. The Democrats don't need the filibuster. And so what if the Republicans take over and there is no filibuster. Let them pass their crazy legislation aimed at taking the vote away from minorities; taking medical care away; cutting medicare; privatizing social security; squandering billions on their friends in the defense industry; separating children from parents and caging the children for months; blocking abortion; and sucking up to Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Il. Let them do it! Then see how well they do at the midterm election. The Republicans do not have enough natural support to elect anyone. They are the only party that needs Q-anon, the Proud Boys, and the White Nationalists' vote. And they are the only party that needs the filibuster to stop the Democrats from: giving access to medical care to everyone; banning semi-automatics with big ammo clips; instituting universal background checks; passing sane gun legislation that will be uniformly enforced in every state; killing PACS by getting Citizens United reversed; funding public education and the National Endowment for the Arts; and returning the government to the people by protecting everyone's right to vote.
Pearl clutching cons making it sound like using the filibuster 80x a year is in the constitution or some shit
Joe navigating the swamp and corralling its creatures like a boss: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...f-pivotal-democratic-senator-for-federal-post Biden Names Wife of Pivotal Democratic Senator for Federal Post President Joe Biden plans to nominate Gayle Conelly Manchin -- an educator and the wife of Democratic Senator Joe Manchin -- to a regional economic development position after the lawmaker has emerged as a key swing vote in the chamber. The White House said Friday that Gayle Manchin is Biden’s pick for federal co-chair of the Appalachian Regional Commission, an economic development partnership between the federal government and 13 states, including West Virginia, where the senator and his wife reside. Gayle Manchin has served previously on the State Board of Education, and chairs Reconnecting McDowell, an initiative in West Virginia run by the American Federation of Teachers. She also served as secretary for the West Virginia Office of Education and the Arts and holds two graduate degrees. She and the senator have been married for 53 years. Senator Manchin is the foremost Democratic swing vote in the chamber, which is evenly split between the parties but is controlled by Democrats because Vice President Kamala Harris breaks ties. As a result, Manchin holds significant sway in Biden’s ability to pass legislation.
“I don't need to wait another minute,” Joe Biden said, pushing for gun reform in Congress. Have gun reform fail to bust the buster? Genius