I am fully aligned with MAGA on a talking filibuster. So, one of us is wrong, not me.
MAGA Micki
Senator Thune
Enforce the Talking Filibuster
No Excuse
Eric Daugherty is Chief Content Officer @RightLineNews
Scott Pressler
Senator Rick Scott
Senator Cornyn
How Talking Filibusters Work
A talking filibuster involves one or more senators refusing to yield the floor, speaking (or sometimes reading) for as long as possible to delay or prevent a vote. Senators must stand, can’t leave (even for breaks), and follow strict rules like the “two-speech rule” per legislative day.
- The Senate floor is occupied by this debate.
- Only limited activities are allowed: speeches, votes, or quorum calls.
- This ties up the chamber, as the filibustering senator(s) control the floor until they yield, the Senate adjourns, or cloture is invoked (requiring 60 votes to end debate).
Contrast with the Modern “Silent” FilibusterSince the early 1970s, the Senate has used a two-track system. This allows the majority leader to set aside a filibustered bill and move on to other legislation or nominations.
Silent Filibuster
- Most modern filibusters are “silent” — just a threat or objection that requires 60 votes for cloture, without anyone actually speaking for hours.
- This lets the Senate handle other business on a parallel track.
Why I Support the Talking Filibuster
- A true talking filibuster forces the obstruction onto the floor in real time, so other bills or routine matters are sidelined until it’s resolved.
- I want no more legislation for the entire rest of the 2026 session.
A talking filibuster would accomplish my goal of no more legislation for the rest of the year.
There would not be a reconciliation bill, no more military funding, no farm bill handouts, and no more money for anything else either.
One might not expect mindless MAGA parrots to understand that. But one should expect Senator Rick Scott, Scott Pressler, and Eric Daugherty to have a clue.
They don’t.
This is what Senator Cornyn meant when he accurately stated,
I marvel at the keyboard warrior-geniuses and grifters who are ignorant of Senate rules and precedents who have miraculously become experts in its arcane rules. Promising the moon and stars and yet destining Republicans for failure is a very effective way to demoralize our base and elect more Democrats in the midterms.
The longest total running tag-team filibuster in U.S. Senate history lasted for 60 working days (or 57 calendar days) in 1964.
The filibuster did not end because the tag team ran out of breath; it ended because opponents successfully gathered enough bipartisan support to invoke cloture. On June 10, 1964, the Senate voted 71 to 29 to break the filibuster, marking the first time in history that the Senate successfully forced a vote on a civil rights bill.
A talking filibuster would only require a tag-team of Democrats willing to do something similar.
Musical Tribute
Republicans Against the Save Act
- Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine)
- Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)
- Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)
- Thom Tillis (R-N.C.)
Talking Filibuster For What Purpose?
The amusing irony in all of this is that there are four Republican Senators against the SAVE Act.
Those Senators are Mitch McConnell, Sue Collins, Lisa Murkowski, and Thom Tillis.
Whenever the talking filibuster ended, the the SAVE Act would still be one vote short of a majority!
A talking filibuster is not going to change any of those four minds.
It’s even stupider because the SAVE Act is not a budget reconciliation item. It would take 60 vote to pass, not 50 plus Vice President Vance.
There are at least 7 Republican Senators against nuking the filibuster totally.
Thune and Cornyn understand this.
MAGA generally doesn’t including Senator Scott and Scott Pressler.
Trump Will Be Crying
On March 4, 2026, I gave Three Reasons the Save Act Is Unconstitutional
The SAVE Act won’t pass, and that’s a good thing.
Senator Lisa Murkowski’s Vote Against the SAVE Act
On July 19, 2026, I commented Senator Lisa Murkowski’s Rock Solid Reason to Vote Against the SAVE Act
You have to be purposefully ignorant or wish to steal the election to disagree with Murkowski.
Where Things Stand
In the off-chance you have not figured this out, blame Trump, Mike Lee, and the entire MAGA charade for no movement on voter ID.
With common sense legislation, Tillis, Fetterman, Collins, and Murkowski would have voted for it.
But this was never about voter ID. It was always about illegal voter suppression and unconstitutional directions to states on how to run elections.
Thom Tillis’ Blistering Critique Of Trump’s SAVE Act Timeline
Senator Thom Tillis delivers a sharp critique of the proposed SAVE Act timeline, questioning whether the legislation can realistically be implemented before the 2026 midterm elections. During the hearing, Tillis raises concerns about the challenges of meeting deadlines, election administration, and the practical impact of the plan.
Watch the full exchange as Sen. Tillis challenges officials over the feasibility of the SAVE Act, voter verification requirements, election security, and the road ahead for the 2026 elections. This heated discussion highlights the growing debate over election laws and implementation.
Related Posts
July 20, 2026: In Praise of Senators McConnell and Tillis Last Brave Act for America
Very few are willing to buck their political party, stick to convictions, and do what’s right.
I have disagreed with McConnell many times. But he is consistent.
McConnell was against killing the filibuster when Democrats wanted to do it, and he is against doing so now.
And Tillis just hit one out of the park.
Ultimately, there are not 50 votes to kill the filibuster which is the final hurdle. There are at least 7 Republican Senators against killing the filibuster.
Mitch McConnell Replacement
Yesterday, I asked How Quickly Could Mitch McConnell Be Replaced by a New Senator?
In the event McConnell is no longer a Senator, what happens?
Regarding the SAVE Act, the question is moot. There is not a majority to nuke the Filibuster even if McConnell was replaced with a senator more willing.
For other purposes, McConnell’s vote could be useful, but that’s unlikely too. For discussion, please click the above post.
Permanent Recess
Dear MAGA, please bring on the talking filibuster because I am in favor of the equivalent of a permanent recess for the rest of the year where nothing at all gets done.
The Democrat Socialists of America want to get rid of the Senate.
HOW VOTER FRAUD IS LIKE THE FILIBUSTER
The ultimate expression of our open debate and free speech is voting. It makes sense that the Senate leadership is against voting enforcement since the filibuster and voter fraud both are majority obstruction and power preservation. The senate leadership thinks they are more equal than everyone else just like elected officials who let voter fraud occur because they are more correct than the majority.
We should all want only citizens to vote. Republican leadership in the senate wants to preserve their power even if it lets people vote who should not be voting. This is the simple equation.
Republican leadership wants to preserve their power not matter who is in control. They are narcissists and only care for their power. Leadership has been there for decades and think they are going to outlast the MAGA revolution. This is a Republican issue because Democrats never get out of lock step with their party for now.
Voter fraud is real. We are the weakest election security of any major voting country. Let’s look at some evidence and convenient coincidences.
1) Democratic states with loose rules are the only states that democrats win.
2) Chinese voting with US licenses in Michigan elections.
3) 13 known voting deficiencies in voting machines.
4) LA mayoral race with mail in ballots.
5) California voters turned away at polls because they “voted” already by mail.
6) Voters rolls with dead people voting and illegal registered.
The greatest weakness of our democratic government is letting people who should not vote grant themselves benefits from real citizens and feed the government corruption machine. The same is true for the Senate who stifle open debate and subvert the majority. More Debate and accountability.
Voter fraud is real like shark attacks are.
Sure it happens. You gonna shut the whole beach down Brody? It’s the fourth of July!
What is the greatest threat to America? Healthcare? Government spending? Inflation?
According to Pete Hegseth it is failure to approve the $1.5T War Department budget!
https://news.antiwar.com/2026/07/23/hegseth-says-not-giving-the-pentagon-1-5-trillion-is-the-greatest-threat-facing-the-us/
One word can describe taco, pathetic.
🚨 BOMBSHELL! Expert Bob McNally confirms the US refining sector is on the brink of total collapse.
The Trump administration recklessly drove refineries to the breaking point.
With maintenance delayed, a massive supply shock is imminent. Washington guarantees a catastrophe!
https://x.com/FurkanGozukara/status/2080399604483326329
I wrote this as a comment recently. The talking filibuster ends the charade …or begins it. Either way it exposes everything. Who’s willing to put on a theatrical performance for months, what for, against what, etc. Ironcially it also accomplishes in a backwards way what a government shutdown does but the bureacracy that always gets back pay at least continues to do their job. Just force Congress to yammer along…and keep many of them off the campaign trail to. Reveal to America how that body politic has earned their 8% approval rating. The only thing they do is talk anyway….and when they happen to stop talking and hold a vote it’s generally another assault on the citizenry with bad legislation. The CRs have the govt on autopilot to ruindation, make it official via a talking filibuster. Dr. Seuss here we come.
Trump announces 2028 presidential bid
Memory care ward, more likely.
Rick Scott wants to run for President once Trump’s out. He is just pandering to the MAGA morons.
If you force the talking filibuster, you create the most crushing cost cuts to the DOD, Big Ag, welfare programs in history. The war in Iran gets shut down the hard way and we lose (even worse). Millions of defense contractor workers will be thrown in the streets.
John Thune knows this. So he’s standing there taking the heat from MAGA like a true leader. This let’s jacka$$es like Scott spout off whatever nonsense he wants. Scott know what Thune is doing for him and the rest of the Republican blowhards. Guarantee they’re shaking his hand after hours.
Great article. Your tracking of whats going on in the madworld of US politics is good work. When you write about the “filibuster”, I could not help remembering Jimmy Stewart in Frank Capra’s “Mr. Smith Goes To Washington”. Sure, it’s 1939 “Capra-corn”, but it’s still a great movie. At the time, the film was seriously contraversial. The Washington insiders said it made US politics look bad and corrupt. Here in 2026, we don’t need movies to say that anymore. We are living in a cruel and curious sci-fi future, but without flying cars and honest government. Probably we never get either. But we have enough for B1 bombers to fly Catch-22 style missions for Israel, and for the US military to bomb girls-schools, just like it did back in the day at Hiroshima.
As a student of history, I find this system of American political progress, sad but interesting. In Capra’s film, there was the corrupt senior senator, who was owned by the “Taylor Machine”. But the modern corruption of the “Trump Machine”, makes it look so small and quaint.
I look at Washington politics, and it reminds me of Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness”… where Kurtz would hold court, and argue his political views to all the inward-facing severed heads on poles, arranged around his jungle house. That scene is my internal metaphor for the US Senate.
The whole USA model was crafted by revolution and violent overthrow. And now that the folks “up the river” have create a 40-trillion dollar debt-load, the old Roman solution – start another war-of-conquest – requires another $1.5 trillion, in order to have “security”. This is madness. The talking filibuster is a great idea. It would be unwise to kill it. Someone on the floor needs to tell the honest truth.
At some point, some sort of sanity and rational reform, is going to have to come to USA.
It will come from within, or from outside the country, perhaps like it did in 2001.
The American political machine – no matter how dishonest and corrupt it has become, still has a chance of self-correcting, if political disruption remains possible, without violence. Those who value America, should do all they can to preserve and protect the USA Constitution and the American democratic model. It’s worth keeping it up and running. Don’t let bad guys and grifters fiddle the rules, and degrade the process any further.
They are way too lazy for that
Having read today that the admin admits in legal docs that they terminated grants soley on politics (blue states), I’m all for nuking the filibuster so that the next Dem president has no problem passing bills that bypass any funding to red states.
Maybe these morons should try to use their one brain cell to think first.
Those are the kind of second-order consequences these dolts cannot perceive, because they have adopted the one-off, all-in style of Trump;’s thought disorder. He will go all in and damage the system, with the hope of a once-time big 2026 win to knock out Dem Americans’ voting rights decisively.
I understand why the Republicans should adamantly oppose killing the silent filibuster. However, Democrats should be in favor of killing the silent filibuster. The reason I believe this is that the Constitutional structure of Senate in modern times favors Republicans and makes it virtually impossible for Democrats to elect more than 60 Senators. On the other hand, if you look at modern history, Democrats and Republicans have held the majority in the Senate roughly equally over the last 50 years.
The filibuster will be killed. Just a matter of when. And once it’s gone, it won’t be reinstated, since that would take a rule change by the party in power, and they won’t want to make it harder to get their stuff enacted. Trump was right about one thing: DC & Puerto Rico should never become states. DC was established to be a neutral area – a non-state. Puerto Rico? Please.
In my perfect world the Senate would kill the silent filibuster and the House should adopt a 60% super majority rule. The House is a constant dumpster fire with elections every two years and majority flipping constantly. A 60% super majority in the House would smooth things out in the body, which everyone would benefit from.
I like that idea. Less legislation would be a good thing.
The bureaucrat in “Yes Minister” said at some point that the reason for all the bureaucracy and expanding bureaucratic departments, is that politicians keep legislating.
I’m in favor of a permanent recess for the rest of time.
Seconded. These clowns belong in a circus.
How are your going to oust the president once the demoncrats win the senate?
Good write-up…I understand none of it…probably a good thing.
MAGA – Trust the Plant – Q
😆😆😆
They could start talking filibuster and all they would need for their material are three things.
Reading Trump speeches. It would make it abundantly clear how insane he is, especially if you get them in the right order so you can highlight his contradictions and dementia.
Reading the Epstein files.
Read non judeo Christian theology into the record.
That’s good to November.
2 hours/day. 12 senators/day. Twice a week. That’s something they could physically do, except for the octogenarians.
Excellent idea!
Mish, I continue recommending your blog to my … few and dwindling … friends, because my morals and standards are like yours. But, IMO you pay too much attention to the rivalry between corrupt teams. I would much prefer to see you campaign for a house seat.
In his early writing, ayatollah khomeini wrote that he did not expect to build his vision in Iran (free of western hegemony) before he died but rhetorically asked himself “can I not at least lay some bricks?”. Well, can not each of us try to lay a brick?
I’m a hypocrite, because I personally gave up preaching peace, trade, balanced budgets, free speech, etc. I’m just saying: If you want to invest so much of your time in politics, stop following what these demons do and start trying to lead.
A great suggestion for all of us.
best to get involved in small local politics to start. city or county level. maybe even state level assemblyman or senator. most folks don’t have the talent or pockets to start at us congress level. mish and others should run locally. or just get involved helping out folks you agree with. i’ve been doing this my entire adult life. lots of boring meetings…….but that is democracy. making money is wonderful. but so much more to life.
It is one skill set (and temperamental style) to figure out strategies and moves and so on, as Mish displays here. It is another to grind through the endless process in a world of large groups peppered with small concentrated adversaries having obstructive power. Mike Johnson is eating that woe for breakfast every morning.
That’s one reason so many people threw up their hands (and stopped thinking so hard) and went with MAGA king-power.
BTW, I think much obstruction and deadlock was seen by the Founders as a feature, not a bug.
Yes, BORING and bloviating. But I repeat myself as do all the pols.
It’s easier to send cash or buy and pass out signs like “No Human is Illegal — just keep them south of the boarder”
Hold your political party and politicians to the standard you expect the other side.
How? We have no power over them. They are chosen by money.
Politics can be nasty and grueling. And obtaining office still won’t change the systemic problems we have. Change is needed from grassroots efforts. Hawaii has squashed the citizens united ruling and Montana is trying the same by public referendum. States are going to need to change their own rules like rank choice voting to break the Uniparty stronghold. Alterations to the Constitution are ultimately needed. The Uniparty will do everything to keep that from happening. It needs to be in the people’s hands. But there are still lots of idiots. And pandering to idiots to get elected doesn’t make them any smarter. They’re going to need lots of education if we’re to get anywhere.
Mish has the skills, and connected the dots here beautifully. If only the decayed institution had any realistic path to engage such talent, at present.
Mr. Smith goes to Washngton was released in 1939. (I met director Frank Capra as a boy reporter; such a nice man!) Norman Rockwell was making his stirring paeans to civic virtue. We may seem way downhill from the hopes kindled there, But close scrutiny of history shows there had been massive shenanigans in Congress, before and since. This, perversely, gives me grounds for hope that something may again shine. But Congress for now is weak and decadent. After Nixon, Congress reasserted itself, It may happen again.
I’m waiting from Triump to conjure up his nemesis, and he’s not disappointing me with his efforts!
I have run for president twice and will do so again if I am still alive.
Meanwhile, I am 72 with as much chance to win a House seat in Utah as I have of being president.