Feinstein says she could support filibuster reform in U.S. Senate

I also don’t believe one party should be able to prevent votes on important bills.” Sen. Dianne Feinstein

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, long one of the Senate’s staunchest supporters of the filibuster rule that allows a minority of members to block legislation, reversed course Friday and said she would be open to reforms if needed to pass bills on Democratic priorities such as gun control and voting rights.

The California Democrat said she had softened her stance in reaction to a suggestion by President Biden, another longtime opponent of filibuster reform dating back to his four decades in the Senate. Biden said he would be open to requiring a “talking filibuster,” in which a senator actually has to talk for hours to prevent a vote on legislation.

“That is an idea worth discussing,” Feinstein said Friday night in a statement. “I don’t want to turn away from Senate traditions, but I also don’t believe one party should be able to prevent votes on important bills by abusing the filibuster.”

The filibuster allows a minority of 40 senators in the 100member chamber to block a vote on many bills. In recent years the Senate has abolished it for judicial nominations and some budget legislation, such as the recently passed coronavirus stimulus package.

Feinstein said the shooting deaths of eight people, including six women of Asian descent, this week in Atlanta was a reminder that “there are many significant issues Congress needs to address,” including “gun violence, violence against women and hate crimes.”

“Ideally the Senate can reach bipartisan agreement on those issues, as well as on a voting rights bill,” Feinstein said. “But if that proves impossible and Republicans continue to abuse the filibuster by requiring cloture votes, I’m open to changing the way the Senate filibuster rules are used.”

The House has passed a sprawling voting rights bill, HR1, which would require states to allow ample early voting and mail balloting. It has also passed bills to expand background checks for gun buyers and to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, which grants legal protections to women who are victims of domestic violence.

None has substantial Republican backing, and all face potential filibusters that would block them in the evenly divided Senate.

The Chronicle reported Sunday that major leftleaning organizations including Indivisible, Courage California and MoveOn were pressuring Feinstein to endorse filibuster changes.

Indivisible cofounder Ezra Levin told The Chronicle on Friday that “it’s great to hear that

Sen. Feinstein is unwilling to accept failure as an option. We look forward to working with her to overcome the Jim Crow filibuster and save our democracy.”

Sen. Alex Padilla, DCalif., has already said he would do away with the filibuster for bills on climate change, health care and voting rights.

Feinstein was not that definitive. But any movement toward reform from one of the longestserving Democratic senators — Feinstein was first elected in 1992 — would be highly influential.

However, she is not the only Democrat to express reluctance to change the filibuster. Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona are among those who have all but ruled out reforms.