California senator Dianne Feinstein infuriated progressive activists last fall when she spoke up in defense of the Senate’s 60-vote threshold for more legislation. “I think the filibuster serves a purpose. It is not often used, it’s often less used now than when I first came, and I think it’s part of the Senate that differentiates itself,” Feinstein said at the time.
Despite being under constant pressure from the left, Feinstein has not yet changed her mind. Asked Thursday if she supports the Senate’s 60-vote threshold, Feinstein told National Review: “I do right now, yes.”
Feinstein added that she’s “looking at” her Democratic colleagues’ proposals to change the filibuster and thinks the Democratic caucus’s “discussion is good. I think we’re all listening to one another.”
“The Senate is an institution, and this is part of that institution,” Feinstein said of the filibuster. “It’s there and you deal with it, and you find you can deal with it. So, changing it, you have to think: What are the ramifications for the institution?”
Is there anything Senate Republicans could do to get Feinstein to change the rule to 51 votes? “I haven’t gone that far in my thinking, because I just know that votes aren’t there to do it,” she replied.