Don’t Forget: We Should Abolish the Filibuster to Abolish Government Shutdowns

There’s been a lot of drama surrounding the Nunes memo, but let’s don’t forget to tend to other matters that could radically help our nation.  Here’s a piece I wrote for The Hill about one maneuver that could help fix some of what ails us.  My article, which is located here,

One year after President Donald Trump took his place in the Oval Office, the anniversary was commemorated with a three-day government shutdown, then a miraculous re-opening. Everyday Americans are supposed to feel a gigantic sense of relief. They don’t.

The grassroots activists who make up the foundation of the GOP didn’t care if the government shut down and did not blame the Republican Party for the unnecessary distraction. Maybe that’s why the Senate decided to vote — 81 to 18 — to get back to business. All but 16 Democrats joined Republicans to pass the short-term spending package that’ll keep things going through February 8. Republicans, in exchange, said they will deal with the so-called “Dreamers” at a later date.

The Democrats knew Americans could see through their unprincipled opposition. The Democrats actually liked the contents of the spending bill, but Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) tried to squeeze the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program into it. Schumer’s squeeze play backfired horribly. Legalizing “Dreamers” in a spending bill didn’t fit and everyone, including the Democrats, knew it.

Please enjoy the rest of this article at The Hill.  And don’t let these sorts of issues fall from our mind as the media demands that we pay attention to their drama-of-the-day.