Samantha Bee comes up with a dozen creative ways to kill the filibuster
Last week, "Senate Republicans once again took democracy behind the back of the barn and shot it in the face," using the filibuster to block a bipartisan Jan. 6 Capitol riot commission, Samantha Bee said on Wednesday's Full Frontal. "The truth is, there's nothing that can overcome Mitch McConnell's obstruction — he's so adept at clogging things up, he's the first human to be designated a fatberg."
"This was the first time during this congressional session that Republicans used the filibuster to block legislation, but it won't be the last," Bee said. "There's only one solution: We have to kill the filibuster. And when I say kill it, I mean, kill it. Burn it, strangle it, draw a bath and drop a plugged-in toaster on it, I do not care. The point is, the filibuster needs to die." She came up with a dozen ways to do the deed, but was agnostic on the murder method.
It would only take a simple majority of 51 votes for the Senate to kill the filibuster, like the House 150 years ago, "but unfortunately, much like the Friends reunion, the Democratic Party is held back by people who make you ask things like, 'Okay, but why is he there?'" Bee said. She singled out Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who has repeatedly said he won't vote to kill the filibuster. "Democrats, you won!" she said. "Stop letting the losers call the shots!"
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Democrats could actually pass some huge priorities, like infrastructure spending, with a simple majority. "The bad news is one of those votes has to be Joe Manchin," Trevor Noah said at The Daily Show. "And it's not just infrastructure: If Joe Biden wants anything passed, from gun control to raising the minimum wage to making LeVar Burton the host of Jeopardy!, he has to get Joe Manchin on board. Basically, if the Democrats are Britney Spears, then Joe Manchin is their dad." They might resent him, but he's also the only reason they have their narrow majority, he noted. "So that's Joe Manchin: party-pooper, radically boring, and the most powerful man in America."
Bee focused on one big thing the Democrats could do without the filibuster: Save voting rights from the states restricting them.
The best thing viewers can do to save voting rights is vote, Bee said. "We change our laws by changing the people who make our laws."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
6 charming homes for the whimsical
Feature Featuring a 1924 factory-turned-loft in San Francisco and a home with custom murals in Yucca Valley
By The Week Staff Published
-
Big tech's big pivot
Opinion How Silicon Valley's corporate titans learned to love Trump
By Theunis Bates Published
-
Stacy Horn's 6 favorite works that explore the spectrum of evil
Feature The author recommends works by Kazuo Ishiguro, Anthony Doerr, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Trump starts term with spate of executive orders
Speed Read The president is rolling back many of Joe Biden's climate and immigration policies
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump pardons or commutes all charged Jan. 6 rioters
Speed Read The new president pardoned roughly 1,500 criminal defendants charged with crimes related to the Capitol riot
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?
Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
DeSantis appoints Florida's top lawyer to US Senate
Speed Read The state's attorney general, Ashley Moody, will replace Sen. Marco Rubio in the Senate
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Pam Bondi downplays politics at confirmation hearing
Speed Read Trump's pick for attorney general claimed her Justice Department would not prosecute anyone for political reasons
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Biden warns of oligarchy in farewell address
Speed Read The president issued a stark warning about the dangers of unchecked power in the hands of the ultra-wealthy
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Hegseth boosts hopes for confirmation amid grilling
Speed Read The Senate held confirmation hearings for Pete Hegseth, Trump's Defense Secretary nominee
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden removes Cuba from terrorism blacklist
Speed read The move is likely to be reversed by the incoming Trump administration, as it was Trump who first put Cuba on the terrorism blacklist in his first term
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published