You probably haven’t seen this on TLC, but back in 1806 the U.S. government accidentally impregnated itself. It all started when the U.S. Senate, still in its adolescent stage, decided it no longer needed to be able to terminate debate and force a vote. It figured this was a more natural way for the land of the free to conduct democracy. Little did it know (much like an ill-advised teenager) that it was fertilizing an egg — one that would develop into a powerful player in our modern democracy called the filibuster.

The accidental filibuster started off cute. It was occasionally used by some determined souls in the minority who wanted to stand up for something that they felt passionately about. It was even sometimes portrayed as heroic, most notably in the 1939 classic film, “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.”

However, as the filibuster grew older, its behavior changed. This was due to some misguided parenting that led to its abuse. For instance, the filibuster had only been used 16 times between 1840 and 1900. However, between 2009 and 2010 it was used a whopping 130 times. It continues to be the most frustrating mechanism for political gridlock in Washington today. It is so out of control that last week, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell even filibustered himself.

The reason the filibuster is used so much is that no one is required to take the Senate floor and speak for hours on end anymore. Instead, it only takes one person from the minority party to simply object to a measure, and if the majority cannot rally up 60 votes to counter it, the measure is killed instantly.

With a Senate so polarized, it’s understandable that the filibuster has been abused to the point where the majority party can’t even pass bills that would otherwise have bipartisan support. With so many Americans frustrated with our do-nothing Congress, it seems the logical thing to do would be to tame down the filibuster for the sake of efficiency.

Recognizing this, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has put forward a plan to enact filibuster reform when the Senate convenes in January. His plan is essentially to make the people filibustering actually take the floor and plead their case. The philosophy being that, instead of having filibusters stop pieces of legislation dead in their tracks, the strung out process will allow the issue to stay in the public eye longer, and consequently let the opinion of the general population decide which side is right.

This idea would serve our democracy well, and deserves bipartisan support.

Unfortunately, there are a number of obstacles that stand in the way of this much needed reform. First, there is always the ironic possibility that the measure to reform the filibuster could itself be filibustered. Second, Senate rule changes require a two-thirds vote, except, for some obscure reason, on the first day of session in January or March when only a simple majority is required. Other than those two rare occasions, it is highly unlikely that the Democrats could gather enough support from the minority party to change the rules.

Being in the minority, it is understandable that the Republican leadership is opposed to filibuster reform. Though really, the GOP should be more sympathetic, considering how in 2005 McConnell was leading a charge to abolish the filibuster altogether. Of course, this was only in response to the large number of Republican judge nominees that were being blocked by the minority Democrats at the time. However, Republicans need to get past this entrapping cycle and realize that filibuster reform is good for the country as a whole.

Granted, passing filibuster reform now will give Democrats more leverage in the short term. But in the long run, the tide will undoubtedly turn, and then the Republicans will get a chance to do what they want without feeling the wrath of vengeful filibusters from Democrats. 

While this will inevitably cause more fluctuations in the balance of power, it would ultimately be better in terms of the truly necessary bills that would be protected from petty party squabbling. Ultimately, it will form a governing body that is more responsive, which is the whole point of a democratically elected authority in the first place.

While the filibuster has grown to be a troublesome character, now is the time for both sides of the aisle to come together and set it back on the right track. Doing so will give us hope for a more productive government that will fulfill the vision of those early dreamers who accidentally brought the filibuster into the world. 

Andrew is a sophomore in Engineering. He can be reached at [email protected].