Goodbye Filibuster? Institutioneller Wandel im polarisierten US-Senat
The Filibuster, more a historical coincidence than a deliberate innovation, is one of the most powerful tools of minorities in the U .S . Senate . Historically known for never-ending talking marathons, it transformed the contemporary Senate into a supermajority institution undermined by partisan obstruction . The unilateral elimination of the Filibuster for nominations in 2013 and 2017, while symbolizing the breakdown of institutional norms in the Senate, demonstrates the enormous pressure faced by majorities to deliver substantial partisan successes to their base . Given the prospects for comprehensive rules reform, the future of the Filibuster is in doubt . A majoritarian Senate, while strengthening a majority party in unified control of government, could induce a broader reform movement, as it might reveal a “crisis of legitimacy” of equal federal representation in a polarized two-party system . [ZParl, vol . 50 (2019), no . 4, pp . 830 - 851]