President Joe Biden previously indicated he wouldn't support reforming the filibuster in the Senate but after it took months to pass the next round of COVID-19 stimulus, he appears to be changing his mind.
"The president's preference is not to get rid of the filibuster," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said earlier this month. "His preference is not to make different changes to the rules, to the filibuster rules."
Nearly 10 days later, Biden is considering other options.
"Aren't you going to have to choose between preserving the filibuster, and advancing your agenda?" asked George Stephanopoulos in an ABC News interview.
"Yes, but here's the choice: I don't think that you have to eliminate the filibuster, you have to do it what it used to be when I first got to the Senate back in the old days," Biden explained. "You had to stand up and command the floor, you had to keep talking."
"So you're for that reform? You're for bringing back the talking filibuster?" Stephanopoulos asked.
"I am. That's what it was supposed to be," Biden replied. "It's getting to the point where, you know, democracy is having a hard time functioning."
The move comes as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell threatened Democrats against filibuster reform, saying he would bring about "chaos" if it happened, calling it "a completely scorched-earth Senate." It caused many to question the threats because McConnell already stopped legislation from moving through the U.S. Senate in 2010. For the final part of President Barack Obama's administration, no judges or legislation was able to move through government because it died in the Senate. McConnell even relished in his accomplishment, calling himself "the Grim Reaper" of legislation.
Politico also reported Tuesday that Republicans are furious at Democrats for passing the COVID-19 stimulus and are seeking revenge. Republicans made the decision as a caucus to refuse to support the bill, but Democrats are now somehow to blame. Ahead of the vote, over 70 percent of Americans supported the legislation. Biden is now traveling around the country explaining to people why it was necessary and how it can help them and their communities.
See Biden's interview below:
