Nearly four in 10 US citizens want reforms to the Senate filibuster, which requires a 60 vote supermajority to approve controversial legislation, while just two in 10 want the parliamentary maneuver eliminated, a Monmouth University poll said on Thursday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th April, 2021) Nearly four in 10 US citizens want reforms to the Senate filibuster, which requires a 60 vote supermajority to approve controversial legislation, while just two in 10 want the parliamentary maneuver eliminated, a Monmouth University poll said on Thursday.
"Nearly 4 in 10 Americans (38%) want to keep the filibuster in its current form with no changes, while a majority either think the Senate should reform how it can be used (38%) or get rid of it entirely (19%)," a press release explaining the poll said.
Most Democrats would like to see some changes, including 49 percent who want reforms and 30 percent who want it eliminated entirely, the release said.
Nearly two-thirds (64%) of Republicans think the filibuster should not be changed at all while about one-third are open to either some reforms (22%) or elimination (10%), the release said.
Among independents not affiliated with either major party, 41 percent want the filibuster kept as is, 38 percent want reform and 16 percent favor elimination, according to the release.
On specific issues, about half of the public supports using the filibuster to block bills on Federal tax rate changes (52%), new programs and spending (50%), gun control (48%), raising the minimum wage (47%), immigration (46%), and election rules (46%), the release said.
Many Senate Democrats want the filibuster scrapped entirely, fearing that the parliamentary device will allow Republicans to prevent the passage of President Joe Biden's plans to expand government with an ambitious social-spending agenda that the president outlined in a Wednesday speech to Congress.
Thus far, however, opposition from at least two Democratic Senators appears to leave Democrats short of the 51-vote majority needed to eliminate the filibuster, analysts say.
The survey was conducted by telephone between April 8 and April 12, 2021, among 800 US adults and comes with a 3.5 plus-minus margin of error.
