[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 28 (Tuesday, March 2, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H1003-H1004]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               SHAMELESS EXPLOITATIONS OF THE FILIBUSTER

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, today, I am saddened as I rise 
in support and on behalf of the American people who do not believe that 
the fate of the Nation should be subject to the whims of just one 
single individual Senator.
  The Senate filibuster was first used in 1837, and for more than a 
century, it has been used very sparingly and as a last resort. Even as 
recently as the 1960s, when the filibuster was used to obstruct 
historic civil rights legislation, it was used to block legislation in 
less than 10 percent of major bills, but a rule change in the 1970s 
opened up

[[Page H1004]]

the floodgates for abuse. Suddenly, by simply threatening to 
filibuster, a single Senator could obstruct any bill that lacked 60 
votes. Today, the filibuster is the last stand of special interests and 
is a platform for grandstanding by obstructionist Senators.
  In 2009, the Party of No, the Senate Republicans, paralyzed the 
country, filibustering our political process--80 percent of major 
legislation filibustered.
  Mr. Speaker, there is no doubt that the Founders of our Nation 
intended for the Senate to be a moderating influence on the process of 
legislating. So they gave Senators 6-year terms of office. At the same 
time, they gave House Members 2-year terms of office so that they could 
be closest to the will of the people. The Senate was to be the 
deliberative body.
  George Washington is said to have argued that the Senate would cool 
legislation as a saucer cools hot tea. In that same spirit, James 
Madison explained that the Senate would be a necessary fence against 
the fickleness and passion of American politics. Yet the Senate no 
longer cools the tea of legislation. It freezes it cold--solid. It is 
no longer a fence against fickle passions; it is an impenetrable wall 
which is obstructing progress.
  The prerogative of a single Senator to single-handedly block any bill 
is an affront to democracy. It is clear that the minority party, 
utterly incapable of governing effectively while in power, has decided 
to obstruct those of us who are here to solve problems. The filibuster 
is their weapon of choice. This week, we are witnessing what must 
surely have been one of the most shameless exploitations of the 
filibuster in American history.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise this evening after witnessing this shameless 
exploitation with sadness in my heart, with sadness at the absurd 
posturing of my friend, the retiring Senator from Kentucky, who has 
single-handedly blocked passage of highway jobs investment, 
unemployment insurance, and health coverage for Americans who have lost 
their jobs.

                              {time}  1945

  When this Senator and when the previous administration were running 
this country, they threw wild pitch after wild pitch--an unnecessary $3 
trillion war; runaway spending that turned a healthy surplus into a 
massive deficit; massive tax cuts for the rich that were not paid for; 
utter mismanagement of the economy; financial crisis and devastation to 
Main Street America--one wild pitch after another.
  So the American people went to the bullpen. They put a pitcher with 
better stuff on the mound. He was a lefty, but he is throwing strikes 
straight down the middle with speed and accuracy.
  But now the Senator is looking to get back into the game, and he has 
thrown a beanball straight down the throats of the American people. 
This week, in the midst of a deep recession, thousands of jobs have 
been furloughed, millions of unemployed Americans have feared the loss 
of their lifelines, their unemployment benefits, and construction 
projects ground to a halt.
  All because a single, lame-duck Senator--ostracized even within his 
own party--wants some attention.
  Well tonight I have an urgent message for the American people.
  Call him. Call Senator Bunning. Tell him Americans are suffering. 
Tell him Americans have no patience for his shameless games. Tell him 
America will not be held hostage. Tell him to be part of the solution 
or to get out of the way.

                          ____________________