Presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden put Republicans on notice this week: If you use the filibuster to stymie his agenda, you’ll lose it.
“It's going to depend on how obstreperous they become,” Biden said of eliminating the 60-vote threshold to end debate. The former vice president previously resisted getting rid of the filibuster but now says, “you’re just going to have to take a look at it.” If Biden wins and Democrats capture the Senate, this would enable them to pass legislation with a simple majority, leaving Republicans powerless to stop them.
Here are 10 liberal policies that Biden and the Democrats could enact without the filibuster that would be difficult to get through if it remained in effect:
1. Gun control: After largely abandoning the issue following election losses in the 1990s, a series of high-profile mass shootings have increased Democratic support for passing what they now describe as “commonsense gun safety legislation.” The details of the exact proposals have varied, but universal background checks and reinstating the so-called assault weapons ban, originally passed as part of Biden’s 1994 crime bill, would seem to be priorities if Democrats win in November. The Biden “plan to end our gun violence epidemic” would make gun manufacturers liable for crimes committed using their products and ban high-capacity magazines. Republicans, and a few Democrats from states with a high number of legal gun owners, would resist such efforts. Junking the filibuster would take away a tool for doing so.
2. Amnesty for illegal immigrants: There was filibuster-proof support for comprehensive immigration reform that would have legalized a large majority of the unauthorized immigrants currently residing in the United States under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, but Republican opposition stiffened after the collapse of the Gang of Eight in 2013 and the election of Donald Trump in 2016. The DREAM Act, a legislative precursor to Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, was stopped by a filibuster in 2012.
Biden has proposed a “roadmap to citizenship for the nearly 11 million people who have been living in and strengthening our country for years,” a reference to undocumented immigrants. “These are our mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters,” says Biden’s campaign website. “They are our neighbors, co-workers, and members of our congregations and Little League teams.” Such a plan might pass simply in response to a Trump defeat. It would definitely get through the Senate without a filibuster.
3. Taxpayer funding of abortion: Facing liberal pressure, Biden has abandoned his support for the Hyde Amendment, which bans most federal funding of abortion. Democrats frequently campaign on Hyde Amendment repeal but have not made a serious attempt to do so since 1993 because the Senate votes have not been there even when they have been in the majority. But with fewer anti-abortion Democrats in Congress than ever before and no filibuster, it would be easier to pass such legislation and restore Medicaid-funded abortions for the first time since 1976.Find out the other 7 Policies HERE.
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