Lindsey Graham Vows To Oppose Any Effort To Blow Up The Filibuster

[still_one]

Source: HuffingtonPost

Lindsey Graham Vows To Oppose Any Effort To Blow Up The Filibuster

The filibuster is the last remaining check on Donald Trump, and Lindsey Graham wants it to stay.

WASHINGTON ― With Republicans in control of the House, the Senate and, come January, the White House, calls have come from some quarters of the Republican Party to eliminate the filibuster and ram through an unadulterated Trumpian agenda.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Tuesday thoroughly rejected that approach. “That’s a horrible, terrible idea,” he said after an off-camera briefing with reporters in the Capitol.

www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/lindsey-graham-vows-to-oppose-any-effort-to-blow-up-the-filibuster_us_582b870ae4b01d8a014b1ac4

Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/lindsey-graham-vows-to-oppose-any-effort-to-blow-up-the-filibuster_us_582b870ae4b01d8a014b1ac4

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If this has veracity, there is a sliver of hope

It appears Lindsey Graham has some real concerns with a Trump presidency, and giving him unfettered concern.

I suspect he won't be the only republican in the Senate with those feelings, at least I hope so. I am thinking that at least Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski would join in on this, and if so, then the filibuster has a chance to remain in tack.

[dflprincess]

1. I think we will be seeing some strange bedfellows in the couple years. nt

[SleeplessinSoCal]

10. I agree.

There needs to be many. Safety in numbers given how vindictive Don is.

[KittyWampus]

31. I listened to Glen Beck calling Trump a disaster. The Heritage Foundation

calling out Trump for its cozying up to Russia...

[duffyduff]

33. The establishment GOP HATES Trump

They know exactly went down during the primaries.

[andym]

2. They only have a four vote majority

so if graham and few others like Susan Collins say no end to the filibuster, it will stay.

[still_one]

4. That is our only hope, actually the countries only hope

[sheshe2]

8. Yup.

[Raster]

3. I somewhat expect John McCain to take the same tact...

...Republicans though they may be, I believe McCain and Graham are patriots and committed to the Union.

[still_one]

6. I hope they will be the only ones either that would put on the brakes

[Feeling the Bern]

5. I believe about 6-10 Republicans will follow. McCain will, Flake will

Collins, Murkowski. . .Hell, I believe Paul and Cruz will too.

[longship]

14. Paul is not a US Senator.

But I agree about the others. Except Cruz. We won't have him.

[No Vested Interest]

15. Rand Paul is the junior Senator from Kentucky, just re-elected to another term. nt

[longship]

16. Oopsie! I was thinking Paul Ryan.

Never mind.

[No Vested Interest]

17. Okay. It happens. nt

[longship]

18. Especially late at night. nt

[trueblue2007]

34. Maybe Rand Paul will vote to keep filibuster too

[marybourg]

7. Yeah, well they also know

that someday they'll be in the minority.

[BadGimp]

9. I predict it WILL HAPPEN

[Spitfire of ATJ]

11. Soon after, Lindsey introduced his "barefoot and pregnant" bill.

[SHRED]

12. Can filibuster be voted out by simple majority?

[wryter2000]

22. Yes, via the what the Rs named "the nuclear option"

We got rid of it for court appointments (excluding the Supreme Court).

[manicraven]

13. Never thought I'd be putting my hopes on Lindsey Graham.

What alternate reality are we living in anyway?

[Solly Mack]

19. I'll believe it when I see it.

[Demsrule86]

20. There is still a runoff for a US senate seat...if we take that and some Gop types

refuse to back ending the filibuster, we may be able to stop Trump.

[wryter2000]

23. He'll still have budget reconcilliation

If he's smart enough to figure out how it works.

[Demsrule86]

24. It creates an obstacle.

[wryter2000]

21. This is a good sign

Those of us who wanted to get rid of the filibuster need to thank our Dems for not doing it.

I hope Graham can get enough other Rs to go along with him. The ones people have named here sound like good guesses.

[Yonnie3]

25. About Lindsey Graham

My brother and I were discussing the political landscape during the primaries and Lindsey Graham's negative comments about Trump came up. After a while my brother said "what has our country come to when we cite Lindsey Graham as the voice of reason?"

[Sucha NastyWoman]

26. He can be from time to time

But more often not

[Yonnie3]

27. Yes! More often not. nt

[47of74]

28. Beauregard Graham knows that the day will soon come when the Republicans will be out of power

And if the filibuster isn't around then all manner of liberal stuff will get put through and if we have a Democrat in the White House then if the filibuster is gone then the Republicans won't be able to do jack shit to stop us.

[0rganism]

35. i think it's more basic than that: Sen. Graham does not like Mr. Trump

political ascendancy has long been associated with paying dues to and connecting with a certain social stratum - the political elite, if you will. Sen. Graham, like many others, is a card-carrying member of that exclusive club. Graham himself ran in the primaries, only to drop out before the voting began. to have a gauche outsider like Trump win where he, as connected as he is, couldn't even place, i'd bet it doesn't sit well with him. the rhetoric about demolishing the political establishment, of which Graham is a long-time member with significant investments in said establishment, probably sits even worse.

i suspect there's a few more irritated Republicans out there than we know about right now.

[geek tragedy]

29. Key to remember is that filibuster is main source of each Senator's individual influence.

Think Ted Cruz and Mike Lee want to give that up?

[wryter2000]

30. Good point

Thanks.

[duffyduff]

32. I suspect there are a lot more Republicans who are not going along with this extremist shit. nt

[neverforget]

36. Orin Hatch says the filibuster is vital to protect minority rights. It might still survive.

Key Republican Puts Dagger In Push To End Filibusters

WASHINGTON — Republicans hankering to end the filibuster so they can enact President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda without interference from Senate Democrats can pretty much forget it.
.....
But with the GOP holding just a 52-seat majority next year, it would take only two defections to end that threat, and some Senate Republicans already have expressed strong reservations about the idea.

On Wednesday, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) may have put a dagger in the scheme.

Asked by The Huffington Post about ending the filibuster, he was blunt.

“Are you kidding?” he said with some vehemence. “I’m one of the biggest advocates for the filibuster. It’s the only way to protect the minority, and we’ve been in the minority a lot more than we’ve been in the majority. It’s just a great, great protection for the minority.”