Bill Bennett: “I remember in the days that I have referred to that filibusters used to be very rare. When a filibuster occurred, it was…”

“I remember in the days that I have referred to that filibusters used to be very rare. When a filibuster occurred, it was a real filibuster. I remember the time when the Senators were told, ``Get out the cots. You're going to be here around the clock. We're going to have quorum calls at 3 o'clock in the morning and do everything we can to break the filibuster.'' It was reserved, if you will, for those issues about which certain Senators felt most powerfully. The filibuster was not an ordinary tool that was used whenever a bill came up that a Senator objected to. You contrast that to today's strategy when the filibuster is used almost routinely, when cloture votes are the most common votes that we cast, and you realize something rather fundamental has happened in the Senate. I think what has happened is that people have discovered that through the use of the filibuster, in the present circumstance, they can change the political dynamic. It is no longer necessary to have a majority in order to work your will in the Senate.”