Common Cause Disappointed by Appeals Court’s Rejection of Filibuster Suit

Statement by Stephen Spaulding, Common Cause policy counsel, on today’s DC Circuit Court ruling in Common Cause v. Biden.

“We are disappointed by today’s DC Circuit ruling, and believe that it is wrongly decided. If the court is correct, there is no imaginable recourse for an unconstitutional Senate rule, no matter how egregious. That cannot be the right outcome in our democracy. Our attorneys are reviewing the court’s opinion before deciding on a future course of action.

“It’s important to note that the court’s decision was strictly procedural; the judges did not rule on the merits of our claim that the filibuster rule and its 60 vote requirement for Senate action is unconstitutional.”