5 stories to read about the bipartisan infrastructure deal

Unsurprisingly, there has been maximum political theater from both sides of the aisle, leading up to and during the current government shutdown. Hopefully, by the time this is published, an agreement will be reached, and the parties can start working together to address the issues at hand. Military pay, safety issues surrounding air traffic control, Food Stamps (“SNAP”), and government health insurance benefits have been among the plot points during the spectacle.

As the drama intensified, we also heard talk of the “nuclear option” to end the Senate Filibuster that allows Senators to delay legislation by continuing to debate the issue. It was not until 1917 that the Senate passed rules allowing a separate vote to end debate. The rules require a super-majority (currently 60 of the 100 senators) to succeed. Filibusters were relatively rare until Senate rules made it easier to invoke and maintain them in the 1970s. You can argue that the Filibuster is inherently undemocratic, but the underlying spirit is to ensure that legislation has bipartisan support. Talk of eliminating the Filibuster – or significantly weakening it – is evidence of the extreme polarization we now endure in our national politics.