It was MIT economist Jonathan Gruber, the architect of Obamacare, who said the “stupidity of the American voter” was the reason Obamacare passed into law. I teach in University and I couldn’t get away with that. I guess you can when you’re smart and teach at MIT.
Even the liberal publication The Atlantic admitted that the results of the 2016 election reflected “the relative ignorance of basic American history, scientific, technological knowledge, and what some refer to as ‘civics’ among a large sector of our population.” They blamed the American education system for this reality but as someone familiar with it, that is just what the American left wanted in what they thought was going to be the 40-year golden age of Obama. Looks like it ended at eight.
Let me help them, and perhaps you, out. You’re not stupid. You can quote me on that. But, here’s a nickel’s worth of free civics instruction.
The Senate has rules. They empower themselves, however they want, to conduct their business. This is curious, but it is reality. The rules suggest that instead of bogging the Senate down by a member reading the phonebook for hours at a time in a maneuver known as a filibuster (to keep legislation they don’t like from coming to a vote), they would save each other the embarrassment of looking foolish and instead require a supermajority of votes (60 of the 100 members) to end debate and call for a vote on that bill.
Now, it’s true the Republicans control the Senate (and the House of Representatives and the Executive Branch). It’s true they could suspend the rule for the supermajority requirement (and both political parties have in their role of advice and consent to the Executive branch), but Republicans want the privilege of holding the Senate hostage (just like the Senate is being held hostage right now) when they’re in the minority. They way things are going, that could be very soon. So, the 60-vote requirement is staying for a while.
In the recent vote to (essentially) shut the government down, there were 44 Democrats who said, with their vote, “Do it.” It really doesn’t matter if 5 Republicans also said, “Do it.” But the predominant cultural narrative that the president shut down the government is false. Frankly, the Senate and House minority leaders and their mainstream media supporters hope you’re still stupid enough to believe it’s the president’s fault. Perhaps they’re still trying to usher in the 40-year golden age of Obama. But for all of his faults, this one doesn’t belong to the president.
Forty-Four Democrats are more than enough to shut the government down. And that’s what they did. So, suspend the rules, or go back to reading the phone book. That’s what all this looks like anyway—foolishness. You can quote me on that.
Civics is the study of our privileges and obligations as citizens. Let’s help out both sides and hold all of them responsible and accountable. Maybe the Democrats will relent and quit voting to shut down the government. Maybe the Republicans will suspend the rule (something that has been called the “nuclear option”). Maybe the media will start reporting the truth.
Naaaaahhhh.
UPDATE: As of noon yesterday, two realities. 1. The Democrats relented and quit voting to shut down the government. 2. You discovered I write these posts ahead of time. Since this civics instruction was free, let’s keep it posted—for future use. ?
(Look at me using an emoji!)