Save the Filibuster!

With the threat of the "nuclear option" looming over the use of the filibuster in the US Senate, more and more Americans are paying attention to this coming historic political event. As Democrats, we should do all we can to show support for Senators willing to stand up to Sen. Frist, Bush and his "activist" judges, and their reactionary supporters. Phone calls and letters of support to our Democratic Senators are a good beginning, as well as voicing your opinion to those who are leaning towards supporting the undemocratic measure (ie, our own Sen. Martinez).

However, I'm looking to expand on this by planning an event hosted by the Young Democrats that will draw more attention to the issue of the filibuster, which has been used to protect the rights of the minority in Congress for centuries. Universities around the country, including the University of Texas at Austin and Frist's own alma mater of Princeton, are staging 24-hour "filibusters" to protest the majority leader's radical proposal to change the rules in the middle of the game. Click on the link for the story. We as young, motivated Democrats should be doing something just as innovative.

My idea is to have a "filibuster film festival" where we show a movie (my initial choice is, of course, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington) and/or a short film, documentary, or special report, and invite all Democrats in the area to attend. In case you don't know, the plot of the movie is about a naive man who is appointed to the US Senate and doesn't back down from powerful senators when they try to pass an unfair and corrupt bill. An event like this may get some good publicity and local press coverage, give us a venue to collect pledges of support, and possibly a way to hold a fundraiser. Local politicians could be involved, and we could also stage this as an early rally/fundraiser for Sen. Nelson, who will be one of our staunch defenders of the filibuster. I have been told that there may be film royalty related issues that would make something like this impossible, and time may also be a problem, so this is why I'm bringing this to the blog.

I encourage comments from all of you, especially those with knowledge of how film royalty laws may or may not affect fundraising. Our time frame is limited (1 to 2 weeks), b/c this battle will probably begin in the Senate next week (May 16-20), so we need to get moving if we go ahead with this. We should talk this out initially using the blog site, and then more privately to work out the details. You can also contact me personally at cwfetrow@yahoo.com.

Remember, if this event doesn't happen, we still need to win the debate in the realm of public opinion, and it all starts with you as an individual. Use your words carefully, pointing out as much as possible the hypocrisy of Sen. Frist's argument. I look forward to discussing this with all of you.