Kamala Harris’s Attack on the Filibuster Puts ‘Democracy on the Ballot’

In re-endorsing the nuclear option on the filibuster, Kamala Harris also detonated many glib “democracy is on the ballot” talking points from her allies. Many opponents of Donald Trump and American populism have invoked some state of political emergency — that radical measures would need to be taken for the sake of “norms.” Yet Harris’s position on the nuclear option has revealed how this politics of emergency undercuts itself, at least if the goal is preserving the American constitutional order.

Eliminating the filibuster would at once overturn longstanding protections for individual senators and usher in a period of heightened constitutional conflict, if not deterioration. No limited filibuster “carveout” on abortion seems likely to stand, as there would be immediate appeals to weaken the filibuster for other proposals. A post-filibuster Senate would let the narrowest of partisan majorities to pass sweeping legislation on a range of topics. By making it easier to pass one-size-fits-all legislation, this empowered central government could severely damage the interests of federalism and further inflame civic tensions. Trying to impose the same exact policy paradigm on California and Texas is a way to guarantee that at least one state is disappointed.