Daily Topics - Friday February 15th, 2013

By shawnt56
Catch The Thom Hartmann Program LIVE 3-6pm ET M-F!
Anything Goes on Townhall Friday
Hour One: Keeping Ins. Co's from bankrupting sick people - Corey Dubin, Committee of Ten Thousand
Hour Two: Meet the 102 year old face of voter suppression...




The filibuster could never be ended by a mere majority. The Senate pretty much started out with unanimous-consent rules, meaning that one senator alone could keep a filibuster going. The threshold to end a filibuster was reduced to 2/3 in 1917, requiring only 32 out of 96 senators to continue debate, and then to 3/5 in 1975, requiring 41 out of 100 senators to continue debate. Of course, "debate" is a relative term in Congress.