The Senate Filibuster Is Unconstitutional

More and more in recent years, a single word has dominated news coverage of the United States Senate: filibuster. The word evokes images of non-stop talkathons and nothing getting done.

Although so-called "speaking filibusters" are almost entirely a thing of the past, there's considerable support for the impression of gridlock. The 116th Congress was the least productive in 50 years; only 194 bills were passed by both houses and signed into law as of December 4, 2020.

For most of the history of the Senate, filibusters have been exceedingly rare, but no more. Mitch McConnell's tenure as Senate majority leader accounts for 28.61% of all motions for cloture (the parliamentary motion used to end a filibuster); 43.4% were successful. His tenure as Senate Republican Leader - both Minority and Majority - accounts for 57.1% of all cloture motions since 1917, of which 75.58% were successful. The 117th Congress has been in business for only a little over two months, and