Trump: Filibuster a ‘death sentence’ for GOP

by Jordan Fabian - 10/06/17 11:27 AM ET

President Trump is renewing his call to end the filibuster in the Senate, calling it a “death sentence” for the Republican agenda.

“It’s a disaster, OK. It’s a disaster for the Republicans,” he said in an interview with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) released Friday. “They have to get rid of it. If they don’t get rid of it, it’s just a death sentence.”

Trump has repeatedly called on the Senate to scrap the filibuster, which imposes a 60-vote threshold on many pieces of major legislation.

The president has blamed it for Republicans’ failure to repeal and replace ObamaCare, even though those bills were considered under special budgetary rules that only required a 51-vote majority for passage. {mosads}

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has rejected Trump’s calls to eliminate the filibuster for legislation. The Senate has already scrapped it for many judicial nominations.

Huckabee ran against Trump in the 2016 GOP presidential primary. His daughter, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, serves as White House press secretary.

Tags Mitch McConnell