The Cloture Curse

About this episode

The episode explores the history and evolution of the filibuster and cloture in the United States Senate.

Today we are heading into the marble halls of the United States Senate to trace the long, tangled story of the filibuster and the rule that was supposed to control it. From a mistake in 1806 to the crisis of 1917, from Strom Thurmond’s twenty-four-hour speech to the silent filibusters of today, the Senate has perfected the art of doing nothing at great length. We will look at how cloture was born in wartime, how it was abused in the fight over civil rights, and how it finally became the 60-vote rule that defines modern gridlock. Along the way, we will ask the question that every frustrated citizen already knows the answer to: how did the world’s greatest deliberative body forget how to deliberate?

People in this episode

Host: Dave Bowman

Topics covered

• filibuster
• cloture
• Senate history
• civil rights
• political gridlock

Keywords

• filibuster
• cloture
• Senate
• Strom Thurmond
• civil rights
• political history
• gridlock

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: United States Senate

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