Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal meets with Executive Director Jessica Toon, Advocacy Chair Victoria Contreras, and other members of the Pacific Northwest Chapter of the Recording Academy for Music Advocacy Day at Studio 201 on October 1, 2024 in Seattle, Washington. (Mat Hayward – The Recording Academy / Getty Images)
By Michael Schwarz November 12, 2024 at 10:52am
Americans will only achieve healthy public discourse when we agree on basic principles and start telling the truth.
As it stands, however, too many elected officials engage in hypocrisy by disguising their political interests as high principles.
For instance, in a clip posted Tuesday to the social media platform X, Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington admitted that her opposition to the Senate filibuster has vanished now that Democrats find themselves in the legislative minority.
“Am I championing getting rid of the filibuster now when the Senate has the trifecta? No,” Jayapal said in response to a reporter’s question.
The congresswoman misspoke when she referred to the “Senate” trifecta. To clarify, she meant the Republican Party’s trifecta, which included control of the White House and both houses of Congress in the wake of President-elect Donald Trump’s landslide victory last week.
Jayapal made those comments on Monday at a press conference with the Congressional Progressive Caucus, per the Washington Examiner.
At the beginning of the clip, a reporter asked how the congresswoman could “square” Democrats’ demands for “filibuster reform” with the fact that the filibuster, in light of Democrats’ election losses, might now constitute their most potent weapon.
Jayapal responded by insisting that Democrats should have eradicated the filibuster earlier but that now they must use it.
“If we had had control of the trifecta and gotten rid of the filibuster to pass minimum wage, to pass paid sick leave, to pass many of these things that are passing — abortion access — that are passing on ballot measures, that are so popular,” she said, then Democrats “would have built some trust with the American people.”
Should the Senate filibuster be abolished?
Now that Republicans won the trifecta, however, the filibuster must stay.
Rep. @RepJayapal admits Democrats only oppose scrapping the filibuster because they lost: “If we had control of the trifecta & got rid of the filibuster to pass minimum wage & sick leave & many of these things on abortion access & the ballot measures that are so popular, those… pic.twitter.com/yQoqqAwNhR
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) November 12, 2024
The reporter at the beginning of the clip did well by asking Jayapal specifically about the filibuster.
After all, as recently as September the congresswoman blasted that ancient procedural tool as a “mistake.”
“The filibuster was originally created *by mistake* in 1806. Every day we don’t abolish it is just as big a mistake,” she tweeted on Sept. 24.
The filibuster was originally created *by mistake* in 1806. Every day we don’t abolish it is just as big a mistake.
— Pramila Jayapal (@PramilaJayapal) September 24, 2024
Whatever one thinks of the filibuster, Jayapal’s hypocrisy defies belief.
Rather, it would defy belief if we did not already see it in other aspects of political life.
For instance, Democrats who spent four years denouncing Trump supporters as “election deniers” and even throwing some people in prison for daring to challenge election results have suddenly embraced the concept of election integrity, which to them means Democrat lawyers suing to overturn Republican victories.
Moreover, many Democrats have spent decades bemoaning the existence of the Electoral College. They did so, however, not because they understood its purpose but because it worked against them twice in 16 years. Had Vice President Kamala Harris eked out an Electoral College victory last week despite Trump winning the popular vote and the entire national electorate shifting heavily to the right, Democrats’ opposition to the Electoral College would have evaporated overnight.
In short, a thing does not suddenly become good because it works to your advantage. If it has merit, then it should remain in place. If it does not, then it should go.
Either way, elected officials like Jayapal should stop disguising their political interests as core principles and start telling the truth.
Michael Schwarz holds a Ph.D. in History and has taught at multiple colleges and universities. He has published one book and numerous essays on Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the Early U.S. Republic. He loves dogs, baseball, and freedom. After meandering spiritually through most of early adulthood, he has rediscovered his faith in midlife and is eager to continue learning about it from the great Christian thinkers.
Michael Schwarz holds a Ph.D. in History and has taught at multiple colleges and universities. He has published one book and numerous essays on Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the Early U.S. Republic. He loves dogs, baseball, and freedom. After meandering spiritually through most of early adulthood, he has rediscovered his faith in midlife and is eager to continue learning about it from the great Christian thinkers.
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