President Biden gave on Tuesday perhaps his most impassioned voting rights speech yet, in which he vehemently decried former President Donald Trump's efforts to undermine the 2020 election and reaffirmed his commitment to "vigorously" challenging the "21st century Jim Crow assault" happening in GOP-led states across the country, The Washington Post reports.
But many, like civil rights leader Rev. Al Sharpton, have been quick to note that Biden's comments — while forceful — neglected to address the filibuster, the 60-vote Senate majority required to pass a bulk of legislation, including bills pertaining to voting rights. Without reforming the filibuster, Biden's renewed civil rights commitment stands hardly a chance in Congress, writes Vice News.
On the other hand, however, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) argued to the Post's Greg Sargent that Biden's failure to mention the filibuster "needn't preclude action" — "by instructing Congress to [address voting rights] with great urgency, Biden is in effect telling the Senate Democratic caucus that they must find a way no matter what," Sargent writes, paraphrasing Merkley.
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In any event, the president may be done "filibustering" for the day, but he should expect all eyes to be on voting rights and filibuster reform going forward.
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