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Tom Udall is an American politician and attorney who served as the junior United States Senator from New Mexico from 2009 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, Udall previously represented New Mexico's 3rd congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2007 to 2009. Throughout his political career, he has focused on issues such as environmental protection, healthcare, and Native American rights. Udall has been an advocate for legislation addressing the challenges faced by the Navajo people, particularly regarding land ownership and economic development.
Over the past few months, during this series of hearings, we have discussed and debated example after example of how the filibuster in particular and the Senate's incapacitating rules in general too often stand in the way of achieving real…
To me, today's hearing is not about examining the current use of the filibuster, but the abuse of the filibuster.
What is truly wrong with our rules is that they have become entrenched against change, something our Founders never intended.
I hope that by reforming our rules, we can restore some of the collegiality and bipartisanship that our Founders intended for the Senate.
If your premise is correct, that that Congress in 1974 had no right to bind the Congress of today, then the whole reconciliation process is gone.
One of the arguments that is made is that if we change the Senate rules, somehow the Senate will become identical to the House.
I think that is really the key issue here, is how we bring accountability back to the institution.
It is time to reform our rules, and as I have said many times, I will hold this view whether I am a member of the majority or the minority.
One of the main reasons I ran for the Senate is because I saw the world's greatest deliberative body turning into a graveyard of good ideas.
There are way too many filibusters. That is your quote. The filibuster is being used too many times.
There is nothing in the Constitution about a filibuster or the Rule 22 provision, things like that.
By a majority vote simply because the Senate operates on the basis that precedents can be established by simple majorities.
The Senate of each new Congress is not bound by the rules of the previous Senates under Section 5 of Article 1 of the Constitution.
We must consider reforms to the filibuster to ensure it serves its intended purpose.
This Congress will go down in history as probably one of the more productive Congresses in generations.
I think that we need to adjust the rules, not to become the House, but to become a restored, effective Senate with the power to deliberate so we can do our jobs and do them better.
The filibuster used to be the exception to the rule. In today's Senate, it is becoming a straitjacket.
The threat of filibusters has become an almost daily fact of life in the Senate.
We should not limit our reform efforts to the filibuster, but look at all the rules.
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