The corporate media is letting the Republicans go unchallenged when they use one of their favorite talking point about how 60-vote thresholds have become standard when debating "controversial legislation." I'd like to see a story that examines the details behind that statement. Relying on my faulty memory and without the benefit of a research assistant or anything higher powered than Google, I remember two controversial bills that didn't require sixty votes.
CAFTA passed the Senate 54 to 45
The Privatization of Medicare via Part D passed 54 - 44
Tort "Reform", which was only controversial to people who paid attention, passed 72 - 26
The Alito nomination and the Barriers to Bankruptcy Bill were subject to the sixty vote threshold and both sailed through those cloture votes.
According to records that Thomas keeps of cloture votes, during the 109th Congress from January 4, 2005 through December 9, 2006, 68 cloture motions were filed. During the current Congress from January 4, 2007 through July 17, 2007, 49 cloture motions have been filed and votes on clearly popular legislation has been blocked.
There are stories in there - the biggest one being how readily the Dems go along with the Republicans on legislation designed to batter the poor and the middle class in service to their corporate masters - but as long as the corporate media lets the GOP get away with the 60-Votes-Is-Standard nonsense, we aren't going to read any of them.
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