Editor,
The looming fight in the Senate over the filibuster is likely to hit center stage if the Republican leadership decides to "go nuclear" and ban the filibuster for judicial nominees. For Democrats, however, the issue of the filibuster is one of conflicting wills.
For decades, the filibuster was used to halt progressive social change. But now Democrats find themselves invoking the filibuster to protect the contemporary social programs they helped craft.
For any good liberal, the idea of invoking the filibuster to thwart judicial nominees or any type of legislation leaves a bad taste in one's mouth. The filibuster has always been used as a way to thwart progressive social change and preserve the conservative status quo.
Today liberals are the new reactionaries fighting the conservative attempt to mold society into its image - in this case, installing ultra-right wing judges to satisfy its base.
This program also includes the rollback of Social Security and Medicare, bankruptcy reform, the fight against "frivolous lawsuits" and, of course, the repeal of the estate tax, just to name a few.
Given this new role for liberals, the mantra of the right wing is to call the Democratic Party the "party of no." How quickly we forget our history - the Republican Party was always the party of no by virtue of it being conservative. God forbid workers collectively bargain or corporate monopolies be crushed or the government even consider subsidizing health care for the poorest Americans.
What are Democrats to do? From a political standpoint, they should just pocket the filibuster for judicial nominees and live to fight another day.
So if this ridiculous issue of the filibuster for judicial nominees comes to a compromise, as it should anyway, it will take even more fuel from the Republican Party's right wing.
The key is for the Democrats to show their collective resistance on issues such as Social Security - the pocketbook issues that are affecting people that won't benefit from the repeal of the estate tax.
If we have to be reactionary, let's go all out and react against the forces destroying the middle class.
That will reap political dividends come 2006.
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Christopher Brill
UNM student
