Sign the petition: It’s time to change outdated rules and fix the broken U.S. Senate

In the 2020 elections, defeating Donald Trump, taking back control of the U.S. Senate, and maintaining control of the U.S. House of Representatives are essential goals for Democrats.

However, even if we achieve all three of these goals, a new Democratic President and Congress won't be able to get much done unless we do something else first: fix the filibuster.

In 2019, House Democrats have passed numerous landmark bills – election reform, a $15 minimum wage, anti-discrimination legislation, protections for and a pathway to citizenship for immigrants, universal background checks for gun purchases, and much more. However, every single one of these bills has gone nowhere in the U.S. Senate, where Mitch McConnell has proudly called himself the "Grim Reaper" of progressive legislation.

Even if Democrats win a Senate majority in 2020, that won’t change if McConnell and Senate Republicans are allowed to exercise a minority veto in the U.S. Senate to block every single piece of legislation Democrats attempt to pass. It’s an archaic rule that doesn’t exist in the Constitution or in state governments, and allows just 41 Senators (who could represent as few as 11.1% of Americans) to block anything.

Republicans haven’t shied away from unilaterally changing the Senate rules so they can pass their top priorities. In 2001, they unilaterally changed the rules so they could pass the Bush tax cuts for the super-rich with just 51 votes. More tax giveaways to the wealthiest and giant corporations followed in 2003 and 2017. And after stealing a Supreme Court seat from President Obama, Republicans changed the rules to ram through Supreme Court justices with 51 votes.

When Democrats get elected, will they have the same determination to deliver an agenda for the people that Republicans have had to do the bidding of the privileged and powerful?

If you support taking on the climate crisis, universal background checks for gun purchases, paycheck fairness for women, protections for people with pre-existing health conditions, racial justice or restoring power to the people over big corporations and billionaires – a Democratic Senate must vote to fix the filibuster and save our democracy.

Sign the petition to Senate Democrats: Fix the filibuster when you take back power.

Participating Organizations:
Sen. Jeff Merkley
Rep. Ro Khanna
Climate Hawks Vote
Consumers United for Fairness
Daily Kos
Data for Progress
Democratic Strategy Institute
Fight for Progress PAC
Iron PAC
LeftNet
Medicare for All PAC
MeidasTouch
National Democratic Training Committee
Progress America
Progressive Reform Network

Supporting Organizations:
Democracy Initiative