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Kamala Harris Isn't the Only Democrat to Support Nuking the Filibuster, and the Ramifications Are Dire

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  September 29, 2024 8:15 PM

As Townhall has been covering, Vice President Kamala Harris revealed she supports nuking the filibuster in order to pass legislation that she and her fellow pro-abortion Democrats say would codify Roe v. Wade. It would actually expand the decision by making abortion accessible in all 50 states for any reason up until birth without legal limit. Such a view isn't entirely surprising, especially since there have been warning signs that the fate of institutions like the filibuster and U.S. Supreme Court at stake. It's nevertheless concerning, though, and other Democrats are echoing Harris' call.

When Harris said she was in favor of getting rid of the filibuster on Tuesday during an interview with Wisconsin Public Radio, it wasn't long before responses came in. Sens. Joe Manchin (I-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) doubled down on supporting the filibuster as they criticized Harris. 

But others, including vulnerable Democratic incumbents, like Sen. Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA) followed Harris' lead. Manchin called out Harris and pulled his endorsement of her when speaking to CNN. That same piece including comments from Casey as well:

Sen. Bob Casey, a vulnerable Pennsylvania Democrat, told CNN Tuesday that he supports Harris’ push in order to pass abortion legislation.

“I think it makes sense to change the rule,” Casey said, adding that it’s his belief Democrats should do away with the requirement to address a whole host of policy issues they care about.

“Well, I’ll just say what I believe. I believe for a long time that the 60-vote rule has been an impediment to progress on a whole host of fronts, including voting rights, which we tried to pass in 2022,” he continued. “And in the process of trying to pass the bill, we tried to change the rule. So we can pass voting rights. I think the same is true for women’s rights, workers’ rights, so common sense gun measures to reduce gun violence. So on a whole host of fronts.”

It's tragically ironic that Casey is now so pro-abortion that he's willing to upend institutions of the chamber he serves in. Not only was Casey once a pro-life Democrat, but he is also the son of the late Bob Casey, Sr., who was the governor of Pennsylvania. His name was also on the 1992 Planned Parenthood v. Casey decision, which tried but failed to overturn Roe. 

Casey only has a slight advantage against his Republican opponent, Dave McCormick in this "Lean" or "Tilt Democratic" race. Pennsylvania is also one of the most critical swing states for the top of the ticket. Not only does it have the most electoral votes of the swing states, but Harris only leads former and potentially future President Donald Trump by +0.1, according to RealClearPolling. It's possible that the top of the ticket will influence the down ballot races as well. 

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McCormick has been warning about this agenda for months. In April, Axios quoted McCormick as pointing out the "filibuster protects America from being subject to the whims of the majority." In a May interview with WPHT, McCormick spoke about the importance of Republicans flipping control of the Senate as "the final barrier to ending the filibuster."

Last month, McCormick warned about Harris and Democrats looking to get rid of the filibuster as part of how "they are going to introduce the most radical agenda ever." And, he warned how that "radical agenda" goes beyond abortion. As he explained on the "Bob Cordano Show," this applies to statehood for Puerto Rico and DC, as well as upending the Supreme Court, and the Green New Deal, which is particularly relevant to Pennsylvania. 

"This is an America that you and I will not recognize, and it's going to hurt all Americans," McCormick warned. "We've got to protect the majority for Republicans in the Senate, which this seat will do, and we got to make sure Donald Trump and not Kamala Harris is in the White House."

"Dave McCormick said Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) and Harris want to get rid of the filibuster 'to impose their dangerously liberal agenda on Pennsylvania and America,'" the Washington Examiner also noted. 

Casey isn't alone. On Sunday, The Hill put out a piece on how "Senate Democrats think risk of nixing filibuster for abortion is worth the reward."

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) is running in what most forecasters consider to be a "Likely Republican" race for reelection, though his seat is still one Democrats are targeting. His opponent, Rep. Colin Allred, is in favor of nuking the filibuster. 

In a Friday episode of his podcast, "Verdict," Cruz and co-host Ben Ferguson discussed "what the stakes are if, God forbid, the Democrats win the White House, the House and the Senate," with Cruz adding "we are literally one vote away from ending the basic liberties we enjoy in America, from ending our democracy as we know it."

Later in the episode, Cruz mentioned how "the requirement of 60 votes has stopped most of the dramatic and extreme proposals from the Democrats from going into office," reminding that "Kamala Harris was explicit she plans to end the filibuster," as he added that "if she follows through on this, it will be the end of America as we know it."

Just as McCormick mentioned other issues, so did Cruz. Harris "tried to frame it in terms of abortion," Cruz explained, "but she's not talking about limiting it to that at all. She's talking about fundamentally changing the Senate, and that fundamentally changes the country."

Not only are the ramifications dire, but it's also not difficult for Democrats to get their way, depending on how the elections go. If Harris is elected, Democrats gain control of the House, and they gain just one seat in the Senate, they could have enough votes to get rid of the filibuster.

As Cruz explained it:

The first thing Chuck Schumer as the majority leader will do in January 2025 is eliminate the filibuster forever. And the way that operates, by the way, it is doing something called the nuclear option, which is he would move to proceed to a piece of legislation, and they probably do it to something, something abortion related, because that's been the context of the promises that many politicians have made. And he would then ask a question of the presiding officer a parliamentary inquiry, what is the vote threshold to move to proceed to this and the presiding officer would say, under the Senate rules, it requires 60 votes to proceed to this matter. He would then appeal the ruling of the chair. That's called the nuclear option. To appeal the ruling of the chair, you overturn what the chair has just ruled that it requires 60 votes. In order to overturn the ruling of the chair, you only need 50 votes. So what he would do is appeal the ruling of the chair. You'd have a vote on the Senate floor and 50 Democrats would vote to overturn the ruling of the chair the vice president, in this horrible scenario, it's Tim Walz, would concur, and the result would be, number one, the ruling of the chair is overturned, but number two, that becomes a precedent that binds the Senate, and it effectively amends the Senate rule so that it no longer requires 60 votes to proceed to legislation. It requires instead 50. That's a bunch of procedural gobbledygook. The important thing to know about it is with one additional leftwing Democrat, just one, Chuck Schumer can end the filibuster.

Cruz warned that Schumer would also look to pass S1, which he explained "is a federal takeover of all elections in America," stressing how it strikes down election integrity laws like voter ID and also registers illegal immigrants to vote. 

Schumer would then have a vote to grant statehood to Puerto Rico and DC, with Cruz noting "Schumer would do that so that the Republicans would never again win a majority in the United States Senate."

Then, Schumer would also grant amnesty and voting rights to illegal immigrants, which, as Cruz warned, would turn Texas blue. "Texas would immediately become California," he stressed.

Democrats would also destroy another institution by packing the Supreme Court. 

Cruz spoke of being "an optimist," adding, "I believe in America, I believe the future of America is bright, I believe tomorrow is brighter than today. I believe we are moving in a good direction." However, as Cruz added, "in that scenario, I have no answer. I view what I have just described as a system ending event... I view what I just described as the end of the United States of America as we know it, and there's no way to turn that back."

Further, he warned that not enough Americans know about such a scenario. "I think most Americans have no idea that we are one Senate seat away from that calamity, from that irreversible situation," he revealed. 

Such a scenario of Schumer and Senate Democrats being able to upend the filibuster and our institutions is "what keeps me up at night," Cruz shared, stressing "we are literally one vote away from that happening."

Getting rid of the filibuster is a matter of "power," as Cruz explained:

Once you get one party locked in power with no ability to constrain them, the country goes downhill incredibly quickly, and I think terrible policies. Look policies, I didn't mention gun confiscation, going after the Second Amendment, going after religious liberty, going after the First Amendment. They packed the Supreme Court. You're not going to have the courts back stopping any of the rights in the Bill of Rights. All of that happens as a matter of course, Schumer's first focus is power, and if he can lock in power forever, that really is the end of our democracy, and ironically, it's the number one priority of today's Democrats.

The podcast involved a further warning as well, with Cruz confirming Ferguson was "absolutely right" to say that "the entire United States of America's history changes if you get rid of this."

"Look, if Schumer ends the filibuster, no Republican ever wins again. It is one party rule," Cruz warned, bringing up Venezuela. "It is the strategy of dictators, and it is a shocking thing that today's Democrats no longer believe--in order to save democracy, they're willing to destroy democracy."