Political Parties and the Senate Filibuster
Congressional historians Richard Baker and Donald Ritchie discussed the role that the filibuster plays in the Senate. They spoke about the nuclear option that eliminates the filibuster and how political parties have used it for their own gains.
Description
Congressional historians Richard Baker and Donald Ritchie discussed the role that the filibuster plays in the Senate. They spoke about the nuclear option that eliminates the filibuster and how political parties have used it for their own gains.
Bell Ringer Assignment
- What are the two types of filibusters that Dr. Baker describes?
- How does Dr. Baker describe the importance of compromise in the U.S. Senate? How does the filibuster rule relate to this idea of compromise?
- How has the make-up of political parties changed in the last 40 years? How are the Senate rules incompatible with this new political alignment?
- Explain the nuclear option and how it has been used by both political parties.
- To what actions of Congress does the nuclear option apply? To what actions does it not apply?
Additional Resources
Participants
Vocabulary
- Cloture
- Cohesive
- Compromise
- Filibuster
- Nuclear Option
- Political Parties
- Senate