The Filibuster’s Uncertain Future

Amid negotiations with Chuck Schumer about how the 50-50 Senate will be organized and run, Mitch McConnell pushed for a commitment to protect the Senate’s filibuster — the 60-vote threshold that must be reached to pass most legislation.

Schumer didn’t agree, but McConnell did get two new public commitments this week from Democratic senators Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Joe Manchin of West Virginia. In an interview with the Washington Post, Manchin said that he “will not vote to bust the filibuster under any condition, on anything that you can think of.” And, on Tuesday, McConnell announced that Sinema “informed me directly last night that under no circumstances would she reverse course [on the filibuster].”

About the Author

John McCormack

John McCormack is a former Washington correspondent for National Review and was a fellow at the National Review Institute.

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Amid negotiations with Chuck Schumer about how the 50-50 Senate will be organized and run, Mitch McConnell pushed for a commitment to protect the Senate’s filibuster — the 60-vote threshold that must be reached to pass most legislation.

Schumer didn’t agree, but McConnell did get two new public commitments this week from Democratic senators Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Joe Manchin of West Virginia. In an interview with the Washington Post, Manchin said that he “will not vote to bust the filibuster under any condition, on anything that you can think of.” And, on Tuesday, McConnell announced that Sinema “informed me directly last night that under no circumstances would she reverse course [on the filibuster].”