The Super Committee Precedent: Why End The Filibuster Just For Deficit Reduction?

http://www.ourfuture.org/blog-entry/2011083212/super-committee-precedent-why-end-filibuster-just-deficit-reduction

A precedent was set in the debt limit deal. If there is a crisis that so imminently threatens America's foundation that the well-being of our children and grandchildren is at risk, then we must suspend the effective supermajority requirement for passing legislation in the Senate to ensure we can take action.

That is what the so-called Super Committee does.

If it can secure a simple majority within the committee by Nov. 23 for $1.5 trillion in additional deficit reduction, then both houses of Congress must vote on by Dec. 23, under simple majority rules. No amendments. No filibusters.

Well alrighty then.

More at the link --

The Constitution gives the house and senate pretty much unlimited ability to set their own rules. They've fast-tracked legislation before to get things done fast and also changed rules to get things done without forcing members to vote (e.g. to avoid having to be on record).

In this case, the senate voted to amend the rules for this bill - which is completely constitutional but it has no bearing on any other legislation. The main goal here was to get it over with before campaign season starts. If they hadn't fast-tracked it, you can be sure the amendments and filibuster threats and reconciliation of different senate/house versions would have gone on a long time. If they left the trigger date this year, there's no way they could have made it. If they removed the trigger date, the republicans would have tried to take it all the way to the election and the democrats would not accept that. A later trigger date but still far before general election would have gone into republican primaries and things would likely get even more political. So the only way to pass something and raise the debt ceiling was to agree to the fast-track this year.

There weren't enough senators to filibuster the deb ceiling bill so it passed. In a sense that was the place to filibuster the super committee recommendation bill and any rule change can be filibustered (the majority can't pass one bill fast tracking another bill to avoid a filibuster on the second bill).