Holt and Aesop

In his participation in the Fillibuster against Frist this afternoon, Congressman Rush Holt read several of Aesop's fables.

"You might have noticed a theme from the fables," Holt said. "Be
careful what you wish for."

It's a good point, and a canny move on Holt's part. As a Congressman, his voice is more likely to be heard than that of any other individual reading there. And his audience -- Republican congressfolk reading the morning paper -- will know exactly what he's saying. There won't always be a Republican majority in the house or senate. And when the Dems are once again large and in charge -- won't they want a rule protecting their interests?

The filibuster is in everybody's best interest. Without it, our judges would become increasingly ideologically divided, with only the Supreme Court to have the final word on more and more rulings that lean farther and farther to the left or right. And as the Supremes get replaced with the new, ideology-driven judges, their own rulins will become more and more suspect. (Yes, even more so than Bush v. Gore 2000 -- or more often, at least.) In the end, it becomes an unworkable system. It needs moderation -- it needs the filibuster -- to stay afloat in the long term.

Read more about Holt and the filibuster in this Daily Princetonian story by Neir Eshel.

Rob