True Baggers. Hillary was probably to the right of Turnbull and Fraser.
It’s an institutional thing. The Constitution gives low-population states like Montana the same number of Senators as populous states such as New York and California. The Senate has also adopted practices which put the brakes on change. Most legislation requires 60 out of the 100 Senators to vote for it (but 50 + the VP is enough for Supreme Court confirmations and “reconciliations”). The filibuster provides an additional brake, such as when Ted Cruz read Dr Seuss books to block immigration reform. Then you have the Supreme Court which has been very conservative over the years.
That’s why the Republicans were so annoyed with Obama pushing the Affordable Care Act through despite total opposition from the GOP. They think he should only have proceeded with bipartisan support (which we now know McConnell would never have permitted). If Obama hadn’t pushed on, that legislation would have continued to be seen as socialism which the public would never accept. But once the public saw it in action, they no longer regarded it as radical. The Republicans know many of the progressive proposals won’t be unpopular once the public sees them in action. They know they have to block them so they still have the aura of radicalism.
When Biden gets in, I hope he doesn’t get sucked into allowing the Republicans to veto change in the hope he can make good on a commitment to bipartisanship. The Democrats need to reform Senate rules and pack the Supreme Court.
It’s an institutional thing. The Constitution gives low-population states like Montana the same number of Senators as populous states such as New York and California. The Senate has also adopted practices which put the brakes on change. Most legislation requires 60 out of the 100 Senators to vote for it (but 50 + the VP is enough for Supreme Court confirmations and “reconciliations”). The filibuster provides an additional brake, such as when Ted Cruz read Dr Seuss books to block immigration reform. Then you have the Supreme Court which has been very conservative over the years.
That’s why the Republicans were so annoyed with Obama pushing the Affordable Care Act through despite total opposition from the GOP. They think he should only have proceeded with bipartisan support (which we now know McConnell would never have permitted). If Obama hadn’t pushed on, that legislation would have continued to be seen as socialism which the public would never accept. But once the public saw it in action, they no longer regarded it as radical. The Republicans know many of the progressive proposals won’t be unpopular once the public sees them in action. They know they have to block them so they still have the aura of radicalism.
When Biden gets in, I hope he doesn’t get sucked into allowing the Republicans to veto change in the hope he can make good on a commitment to bipartisanship. The Democrats need to reform Senate rules and pack the Supreme Court.
