Senate

Make ‘Em Filibuster: Bunning Edition

By Jay Newton-Small | @JNSmall | March 2, 2010 | +

Senate Democrats are looking to force Jim Bunning, who has single handedly blocked a bill extending unemployment insurance benefits (amongst other provisions) causing them to lapse on Sunday, into an actual filibuster. Well, sort of. Roll Call reports that Dems are lining up a series of senators who will attempt to move for a vote on the bill all night long, forcing Bunning to be present in the chamber to physically voice his objection to prevent a vote. It’s unclear if the handful of Republicans who’ve spoken out on Bunning’s behalf — Sam Brownback, Jon Kyl, Jim DeMint and John Cornyn — will help him sustain his block on the bill.

Subscribe to Jay Newton-Small on Facebook
Related Topics: filibuster, jim bunning, Senate, unemployment insurance, Democratic Party, Economy, Harry Reid, Republican Party, Senate

  • Latest on Swampland

    Pete Souza / The White House via Getty Images
    Closeup May 25, 2012

    Political Picures of the Week, May 18-25

    TIME’s photo editors bring you the best pictures of the past week from the Beltway and beyond.

    From our Partners

    Obama Administration Blocks Global Health Fund To Fight Disease In Developing NationsHuffPost Politics

    From left: AP; ABACAUSA
    2012 Election May 25, 2012

    The Phony War: Obama and Romney Are Debating Character, Not Policy

    More than five months from Election Day, the back-and-forth about Mitt Romney’s record at Bain already feels played out. Unfortunately, there’s good reason to expect the campaign continues in this vein indefinitely. Neither Barack Obama nor Mitt Romney are terribly interested in dwelling on policy platforms. Romney’s plan to slash spending and keep taxes low on the wealthy isn’t especially popular, at least not at any level of detail beyond a blithe promise to shrink the deficit. Meanwhile, Obama’s signature first-term achievements, like health care, the stimulus and Wall Street reform, are all unpopular or tricky to sell. (The Dodd-Frank bill is the most popular of these, but hyping it means offending wealthy donors.) So what we’re getting instead is a superficial duel about character–and, worse, one that’s based on the largely false premise that the better man can better “manage” the economy back to health.

  • afguy

    By now, THIS should be a no-brainer…
    .
    MAKE THEM ACTUALLY DO IT!!!

  • deconstructiva

    Jay, thanks for staying on this. Are the D’s setting up procedures for Karen’s first Real Filibuster™: roll call, points of order, cots and blankets, seriously? From your last post re: Bunning getting an earful from fellow R’s, do you have names and quotes for us? I’d love to know who has his back and who’s ripping him to pieces.
    .
    Also (OT), given your excellent work in Haiti, after this will the High Sheriffs pack your bags and send YOU to Chile for a few days? I’d bet you’ll find some good stories down there, Jay. Keep up the great work.

  • square1

    Finally.

    I would have preferred it if the Dems had picked a bill on which they more more right on the policy than on the optics.

    Yes, I know the GOP Senators, Bunning included, are a bunch of shameless hypocrites who haven’t cared about deficit spending for 30 years. Still, I have no problem with his stated PAYGO-esque principle.

  • dwilde1

    All he has to do is to stay on-topic about how the TARP funds were wasted on @ssholes. He can sustain this fillibuster for YEARS talking about that.
    .
    He’s only asking that remaining TARP funds be retargeted, and that’s a pretty clear YES.

  • deconstructiva

    I’m also wondering who among the R senators is to Bunning like Lindsey Vonn is to Julia Mancuso: teammates and frenemies, the #2 finally gets the moment but when things go wrong they’re both after each other. (I’d bet Jay and KT would know.)

  • http://teacherreaderwriter.wordpress.com/ Shakespeare in GA

    My God, what a group…Bunning, Cornyn, DeMint, Brownback, and Kyl. Imagine having this gang in your home for coffee.

  • afguy

    Uhuh. I’d have to inventory the silverware and household jewelry after they left…

  • http://2tiredofcrap.wordpress.com 2tiredofcrap

    It’s TOO freakin’ LATE! You’ve already shown America, Bunning/Republicants/GOP, that you want us to GROVEL and beg to get any sort of cooperation and assistance from you. But what REALLY grinds my beans is that this is NOT YOUR MONEY!!! Hard-working Americans have paid unemployment insurance TAXES for this right — and you want to DENY us what is rightfully OURS??!!! I for one am SICK and TIRED of the GOP’s ‘let them eat CAKE!!!’ attitude — anytime they are asked to cooperate and vote on ANY proposal that comes from Obama’s White House! It appears that it doesn’t even seem to MATTER what the proposal is — it could even be a proposal to assist YOU, you idiots! But as long as President OBAMA is doing the proposing, you SENILE geezers fold your arms, cross your legs and REFUSE to cooperate! Well, I want you to know that we hard-working Americans don’t take your indifferent attitude LIGHTLY! And we will LOUDLY voice our immense displeasure with the Republicants/GOP — at the POLLS!!!

blog comments powered by Disqus