(NationalUSNews.com) — Republicans within the United States Senate have recently announced that they plan on defending the fillibuster, despite former President Donald Trump’s outspoken opposition to the controversial lawmaking maneuver.
Trump famously announced that if elected, his administration would pass legislation that would end the filibuster, theoretically reducing the votes required to pass legislation within the Senate. Trump planned on ending the filibuster during his first term so his administration could pass controversial legislation with fewer challenges from the Democratic Party’s majority in the Senate, but Senate Republicans seemed opposed to the former president’s intentions.
Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), who also serves as the Republican Party leader within the congressional body, is among the Republican lawmakers opposed to Trump’s planned termination of the filibuster. McConnell famously opposed Trump’s initial plan to end the filibuster during the former president’s first term in office, and other Republicans plan to continue McConnell’s fight should the senator retire from office. A common criticism of Trump’s proposal to terminate the filibuster is the longstanding use of the lawmaking tool in Congress, as the filibuster has been used since the first meeting of the United States Senate in 1789.
The majority of Republican lawmakers within Congress openly support the continuation of the filibuster and have publicly stated that they would not support Trump’s efforts to terminate the legal maneuver. The filibuster prevents legislation without at least 60 votes, forcing Senators to cooperate to pass bills into law. By removing the filibuster, Trump could pass laws without requiring a majority of senators’ support. Although many Republican lawmakers claim that they won’t support the filibuster’s termination, several elected officials have contacted various media outlets to express concerns about publicly opposing Trump.
Among the Republicans who opposed Trump’s planned termination of the filibuster are Senators John Cornyn (R-Texas), John Barrasso (R-Wyoming), Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas), and John Thune (R-South Dakota). While each senator has openly supported Trump’s controversial political platform in the past, all have announced that they consider the filibuster an essential part of the United States Senate. Cotton, in particular, seemed critical of lawmakers who wished to remove the filibuster from Congress.
Cotton famously started a movement against Democratic lawmakers in 2022 after they threatened to end the filibuster when pushing voting rights legislation. Cotton will likely serve as the next Republican Conference Chairman within the Senate and could pose a significant challenge to Trump’s effort to end the filibuster if the former president gains support from other party members.
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