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A filibuster is a tactic used in the United States Senate to delay or block a vote on a measure by preventing debate on it from ending.[1]: 2 The Senate's rules place few restrictions on debate; in general, if no other senator is speaking, a senator who seeks recognition is entitled to speak for as long as they wish.[2]: 716 Only when debate concludes (whether naturally or using cloture) can the measure be put to a vote.
Rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the United States Senate allows the Senate to vote to limit debate by invoking cloture on the pending question. In most cases, however, this requires a majority of three-fifths of the senators duly chosen and sworn (60 votes if there is no more than one vacancy),[3]: 15–17 so a minority of senators can block a measure, even if it has the support of a simple majority.
Even once cloture has been invoked, in most cases debate can continue for a further 30 hours, and most major bills are subject to two or three filibusters before the Senate can vote on passage.[4] Even bills supported by 60 or more senators (as well as nominations) may therefore be delayed by a filibuster. A filibuster can also be conducted through the use of other dilatory measures, such as proposing dilatory amendments or making dilatory motions.
Throughout the Senate's history, senators have frequently made efforts to curtail the use of the Senate's filibuster. Notably, in 2013 and 2017, the Senate used the nuclear option to set a series of precedents that reduced the threshold for cloture on nominations to a simple majority.[5]: 3 Since then, nominations can be confirmed without the support of 60 senators, though they may nonetheless be delayed by a filibuster. Moreover, a number of rulemaking statutes have been enacted to limit the scope of the filibuster by imposing an automatic time limit on Senate debate of certain questions.[4] These include the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (which created the budget reconciliation process), the Congressional Review Act and the District of Columbia Home Rule Act. Since debate on such measures ends without cloture being invoked, they are not subject to the 60-vote threshold.
- ^ Heitshusen, Valerie; Beth, Richard S. (April 7, 2017). Filibusters and Cloture in the Senate (Report). Congressional Research Service. Archived from the original on March 24, 2022. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ Riddick, Floyd M. (1992). Riddick's Senate Procedure. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office.
- ^ Standing Rules of the Senate (PDF) (Report). United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration. November 4, 2013. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 14, 2023. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ a b Klein, Ezra (May 27, 2015). "7 myths about the filibuster". Vox. Archived from the original on June 6, 2022. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ Heitshusen, Valerie (July 22, 2019). The Legislative Process on the Senate Floor: An Introduction (Report). Congressional Research Service. Archived from the original on July 23, 2022. Retrieved October 2, 2022.