Does the Filibuster Have a Future?

On November 5, 2025, President Trump invited Senate Republicans to the White House to reiterate a message he’d been pressing for days amid a government-shutdown fight: it was time to do away with the filibuster.

“We have to get the country open,” Trump told the assembled senators. “And the way we’re going to do it this afternoon is to terminate the filibuster.” Then came his acknowledgment of the harsh political reality. “It’s possible you’re not going to do that. And I’m going to go by your wishes,” he conceded. “You’re very smart people. We’re good friends. But I think it’s a tremendous mistake. It would be a tragic mistake, actually. It’s time.”