Establishment Republicans might have feared losing the Senate, and its filibuster rule, more than losing the White House, but now, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., might seek to drive a stake in that final one standing.
"The American people want us to take action, action on this pandemic, action on this economy and on a host of other issues, and if this filibuster has now become so common in the Senate that we can't act, that we just sit there helpless, shame on us," Durbin told NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday. "Of course we should consider a change in the rule under those circumstances, but let's see.
"Let's see if we can initiate a real bipartisan dialogue and get something done. That's the bottom line."
Durbin told host Chuck Todd that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's request the filibuster rule "not be touched" is a "nonstarter."
"If we gave him that, the filibuster would be on everything, everyday," Durbin added amid a 50-50 Senate split.
Durbin, like Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's organizing resolution for the new Senate, wants to revert to the Senate rules the last time there was a 50-50 split after the elections for President George W. Bush's second term.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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