The Senate Parliamentarian ruled that the $15 an hour minimum wage is not properly part of a budget reconciliation, and thus, can’t be voted on as part of that package. This means that the only way to achieve it is a direct Senate vote. The problem is that with the filibuster as a weapon, forty one Senators can block the other fifty nine from even voting on a bill. That’s not democracy by any stretch of the imagination.

I happen to disagree with the Parliamentarian, as I believe that raising the minimum wage for the first time in well over a decade, will have a significant, beneficial impact on the budgetary process and the economy. However, this is a highly technical question upon which reasonable minds may differ, and since reconciliation is a unique exception to the filibuster weapon, a reasonable mind could interpret it restrictively. (Though my reasonable mind found otherwise.) As a lawyer, I learned to respect different opinions which were issued in good faith, based upon law and fact. Disappointing as the ruling may be, I’m confident it was reached exactly that way.

Twenty years ago, when faced with a similar problem, The Republican Senate majority fired the Parliamentarian, and appointed a new one. Four years ago, egged on by McConnell, VP Pence overruled the decision of the Parliamentarian. Democrats could do the same, but they should not. The problem is not a Parliamentarian, acting in good faith to make tough calls. We must remember that a Parliamentarian is nonpartisan, and base their decisions solely on how they interpret the procedural rules, not on their merits of any issue. The problem here is the anti-democratic filibuster, which won’t allow the Dems to get a floor vote, which would surely pass, as they have the majority. The wage increase is supported by a huge majority of Americans. The only reason Dems are struggling to place it in the reconciliation is because of the filibuster weapon.

In other words, Dems must acknowledge and face up to the reality that the problem is not a Parliamentarian, or the procedural rules of reconciliation. The enemy is the filibuster; without it, Dems could pass almost their entire agenda (that s.o.b Manchin will find something good to kill; that’s what he does for his GOP allies. But we can persuade him that it not be the wage increase. He’s a political hack without any principles, making it easy top horse trade with him if necessary. Let’s start looking for a better Dem to run against him in the primary next time; maybe that will shake him to his senses. And, hopefully, we’ll pick up enough Senate seats that a loss in W.VA won’t matter.) If the filibuster ends, so does McConnell’s chokehold on passing. It’s far easier to deal with one errant Democrat than with forty one Republicans who exist solely to block all progress.

End the filibuster. It’s the only way to achieve what the American people voted for. Let your (Democratic) Senators know you want it ended.

#EndTheFilibuster #VoteBlue4Ever