What is a Filibuster?

ThisNation ^ | timely reports/current | Contributing Author, Shad Satterthwaite, Ph.D., University of Oklahoma

[MeekOneGOP]

Correction of bad link, s/b...

[Mid-19th century. Via Spanish filibustero  from, ultimately, Dutch vrijbuiter pirate (source of English freebooter).]

[Grampa Dave]

I think that essays like your great paragraph should just appear in a random basis. If we got to a once a month thing, then it could become a mini freepathon.

We can use our tag lines to present the concept of monthly donations with each reply and post we make.

Ed Reform is a great indexer of the good essays/replies re why we need more monthly donors and is very creative in the use of these older messages.

Whenever we have a victory like the recent one in Oregon where the stealth tax increase was defeated, and the lunatic left blames Free Republic. Those Freepers involved need to post that as another success story and ping a list of pro monthly donors. If they need some help in editing or making a post, they can contact some of us for help.

Probably only a few Freepers know about that Oregon victory and the left wingers whining about Free Republic. We need more Freepers to know about it, right Ebuck?

[PhiKapMom]

Put that paragraph on my profile page as well as the info on the Bush 2004 ping list!

Thanks for the idea!

[PhiKapMom]

Post #43 was meant for you!

[Grampa Dave]

Thanks, sometimes our fingers are faster than our brains! :)

[PhiKapMom]

That's an understatement!

I was watching the postal truck on Fox being trailed by police -- guess it is a hostage situation in of all places Miami, FL!

Should have watched and not posted!

[Mo1]

I was watching the postal truck on Fox being trailed by police

Has it run out of gas yet??

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Thank you for the post and the pings!

PKM, if you get tired of the postal hijacking, VP Cheney's live on C-Span. (^;

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the heads up!

[Mo1]

VP Cheney's live on C-Span. (^;

THANK YOU!

[blackie]

Be Well - Be Armed - Be Safe - Molon Labe!

[EBUCK]

Huh, whaddid I miss?

I should start another thread detailing the whinney libs in Oregon blaming FR for thier dismal outlook??

[EBUCK]

How will Teddy K get his drinks?

He's got an alchohol drip set up under his suit. If a phillyburster hits and he's in "need" he just ups his dosage, applied thru IV.

[Bigg Red]

.30, Thank you for the post.

PKM, thanks for the flag, girlfriend.

[Political Junkie Too]

Tom Daschle institutionalized the "threat of a filibuster" when he declared that "controversial" bills would require 60 votes to be had before allowing the bill to come to the floor. His 60-vote rule was based on the assumption that a controversial bill would be filibustered, and that 60 votes would be required to invoke cloture, therefore, if you didn't have 60 votes going in then the bill wouldn't be considered at all. What this was, was really tyranny of the minority. Instead of having 51 Senators decide what happened, only 40 Senators controlled what happened.

This is kind of like that Star Trek episode where the two planets were in a centuries-old war where people didn't really fight, they "pretend-fought" over computers and then went to death chambers when they were hit. That was too clean a way to fight a war, and Daschle's 60-vote rule was too clean a way to block bills.

Make them actually filibuster.

-PJ

[davidosborne]

great educational thread.. unfortunately the average citizen does not understand this basic principle of the Senate... this is why it is so important that we get 60 GOP Senate Seats.. this is the only possible way to get our REAL agenda passed... another interesting fact is that FREEPERS have a LOT of power to counter filibusters... we can get the word out to the masses very quickly.. and could produce tremendous pressure on the democrats who seek to abuse the "filibuster" to prevent the Majority from passing the agenda that the American people voted for..

FReegards,

David

[.30Carbine]

Thank you for your contribution to my education. That's a very informative post. It was a teaser, though - it made me want more!

[Palladin]

Thanks, carbine! This is a term we were well familiar with in 7th grade, as we had to learn and memorize the workings of all 3 branches of the government in order to pass the very tough New York State Regents exams in 8th grade.

I wonder how many kids have to learn these things nowadays.

[.30Carbine]

This is exactly why we need at least 60 Republican Senators sworn in 2005 before President Bush is sworn in for his second term.

You make a wonderful point, and I thank you for making it. Do we *have* to wait 'till '05, though, before we get vacant seats on various benches filled?

[.30Carbine]

Will be very interested to read this later.

It is a very timely subject, as well as fascinating reading from both historical and political activism vantage points. I have enjoyed learning more about how things work or, in the case of the filibuster, don't work, in Washington.