Briefly Noted: Reminder--There Are Two Houses Of Congress
Recent comments, usually counsels of despair, fail to take into account the fact that legislation passed by the Dem House doesn't become law unless it's also passed by the Senate. And, except for revenue items (please don't ask me to explain this), the Senate filibuster remains a likely insuperable obstacle for the Dems before 2022. This is explained nicely at Red State:
Democrat Broken Promises are Mounting Up As Party Infighting Begins Taking Center Stage
The Democrat wish list is pretty much that, a wish list, and won’t be anything more than that due to the filibuster which disallows the Senate to pass legislation based on a simple majority vote. They need at least 10 Republicans to vote for the bill as well, and Republicans aren’t budging. What’s more, some Democrats aren’t going to help either.
The way to fix this would obviously be to kill the filibuster, which is fairly high on the Democrat Party’s wish list, but not on all of theirs. Both West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin and Arizona Senator Krysten Sinema have no plans to help anyone kill the Senate filibuster rule, with Manchin making it clear in a very angry way.
(READ: “NEVER!”: Sen. Joe Manchin Angrily Barks at Reporter That He’s Not Going to Kill the Filibuster )
The filibuster is the dam holding back the tide of leftist legislation that would flood America with every bad idea a government could come up with. As such, Biden’s campaign promises are now withering and dying off with Schumer seemingly resigned to the fact that there’s nothing he can do about it. When asked about when the Equality Act was being passed, Schumer could only give the roundabout answer of “at the exact right time,” which in politician speak means “never.”
This means no H.R. 1, no $15 minimum wage, no passing bills in order to find out what’s in them.
I'm not ready for despair, despite everything. Please note that it's not just Manchin--Sinema spent her first two years voting for Trump judges and is also not budging on the filibuster.
This likely means that, with the two year window slammed shut, there's a lot riding on 2022. Everyone advocating assembly of a circular firing squad--via a third party--please reconsider. Trump is smarter than that, and we should all know what's at stake.