Today I print a letter by my friend Jeff Deiss to his Senators and Congressman. It is a letter which I wholeheartedly support. I will be sending similar letters to my congressional delegation as well. I invite you to do the same.
A year ago was the darkest day in American democracy in my lifetime. The real possibility that a strongman would be able to override two centuries of gradually improving American democracy was shocking, something I never believed possible. It seems clear that 2021’s ultimately successful transition of power to a democratically-elected Administration has not been enough to assure that the processes in place can be comfortably depended upon going forward. Many States have enacted laws that diminish the rights of voters and the power of the majority of voters to see their choices honored. A year later, the situation remains precarious, and the stakes remain high.
Therefore I am writing to urge you to support a Senate rule change that will end the filibuster for a single bill on voting rights.
I know that the filibuster rule has held a long and often honorable role in Senate deliberations, assuring that compromise and bipartisanship are used in enacting laws. So I do not urge this lightly. But the dangers to our democracy now transcend the importance of a traditional moderating rule of the Senate, however wise or respected.
If the will of the people as expressed in free and fair elections is allowed to be compromised, our democracy is lost. Given the choice between preserving our democracy or the filibuster, the decision must be to end the filibuster rule this once in favor of protecting voting rights.
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