"(The word “filibuster” comes from vrijbuiter—old Dutch for 'looter.')"
George Packer for The New Yorker, here
About a week ago, all the cool kids were linking to George Packer's article on the myriad maladies of the senate; I, being slightly less cool, am only getting around to it now. Fortunately for me (and unfortunately for the country) the Senate is just as messed up as ever, so I can still add my two cents to Packer's treatment of the non-functional Senate.
The first takeaway: There are a lot of synonyms for the word opaque, and Packer finds every one (labyrinthine, byzantine, etc.)
The second takeaway: The filibuster, despite its notoriety, is not really the biggest problem with Senate procedures. The filibuster gets all the attention, but its the holds--secret or otherwise--and the constant need for unanimous consent to undertake even the most basic housekeeping measures that really kills legislation (call it death by 1,000 roll calls).
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