Preserving filibuster

Last week, Vice President Kamala Harris stated she wanted to get rid of the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster-ending rule for Roe where only  51 votes would be enough to put back into law the protections for reproductive freedom. However, back in 2017 when she served in the U.S. Senate representing California, she urged her Senate colleagues to preserve the filibuster when Republicans controlled the Senate. Back then, she stated “We are united in our determination to preserve the ability of members to engage in extended debate when bills are on the Senate floor.” So what changed? First off, the Democrats control the Senate today.

Kudos to Boston Herald columnist Gary Franks, a former three-term Republican U.S. Representative from Connecticut. His recent commentary pointed out the importance of the filibuster to ensure that no one party can ram through legislation on purely partisan terms.

No matter who takes the White House or the Senate, the filibuster must remain to ensure debate on the  merits of proposed  legislation. The majority party should always listen to the minority party’s point of view. In the past legislation on Social Security, Medicare and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 were all passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. Important legislation should never be railroaded through Congress on party lines.

Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who recently left the Democratic Party and switched to Independent status, stated, “(Harris) knows the filibuster is the holy grail of democracy. It’s the only thing that keeps us talking and working together. If she gets rid of that, then this would be the House on steroids.”

Someone should tell Senate Democrats that eliminating the filibuster to codify Roe vs. Wade also enables  a future US Senate ban on all abortions too. This is one reason why as much as leaders in both parties always threaten to use the nuclear option, rarely does that happen because everyone at some point realizes that what’s good for the goose is good for the gander.

Sal Giarratani

East Boston

Harris’s policies

Beginning with her no-voters-involved ascension to be the nominee of her party, Kamala Harris has been unable to provide specific remedies for the numerous ills that confront our nation.  Starting with her truncated interview with a CCN personality to her sit-down with an ABC affiliate reporter, Harris has responded to questions requiring specific, factual answers with her trademark word salads, all the while assuring us that her values remain unchanged.  Let’s take her at her word.  A review of Harris’s  public career tells us pretty much everything we need to know. The issues and proposals she has consistently espoused make her the most left-wing presidential candidate in our nation’s history including, but not limited to, ruinous taxation, Second Amendment and free speech issues. Her celebrated vibe of joy and an imagined holistic approach to our problems are no substitute for common sense solutions.

Brian J. Sullivan

North Reading