Wall Street Journal

Sen. Rick Scott

August 6, 2026 

Sen. John Curtis, my colleague from Utah, proves reasonable in defending Senate norms and procedure in his op-ed “I Won’t Change the Filibuster” (July 31).

However, Americans should understand how abuse of the filibuster has killed real debate, negotiation and results. Keeping the status quo can’t solve this crisis.

Abuse of the filibuster has stifled open debate in the chamber. It prevents, by design, the results that voters expect us to deliver.

When cloture was created, the implicit understanding was that senators would debate to the point of satisfaction or exhaustion, then vote.

That understanding is long gone. Modern majority leaders file cloture before debate begins. The agenda changes at the threat of debate. The iconic final scene from the film “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” rarely occurs.

Before the “nuclear option” lowered cloture thresholds, senators confirmed Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court 52-48. Opponents could have used the filibuster to block him, but senators respected traditional norms and moved forward after debate.

In 1964 opponents of the Civil Rights Act attempted to stop the legislation with a filibuster. The bill’s supporters were initially far short of the 67 votes needed to break the filibuster. But by forcing open debate, the Senate finally forced an answer on Jim Crow.

Today, that kind of debate never happens. We don’t force compromise. We don’t lock ourselves in a room to negotiate until we have a deal.

The filibuster is a muscle we never exercise. It has atrophied. Senators have lost the implicit understanding that a debate needs to happen before it can end.

This legislative body needs to deliver results, not fail while adhering to a prohibitive process. We should end the filibuster and pass the SAVE America Act—or require debate until exhaustion or satisfaction.