Filibustering: A Political History of Obstruction in the House and Senate (Chicago Studies in American Politics) Review

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Filibustering: A Political History of Obstruction in the House and Senate (Chicago Studies in American Politics) ReviewKoger's book on Congressional obstruction is essentially a Master's thesis on the topic. The book uses filibuster in the broadest sense to refer to all types of obstruction including threats of filibusters, quorum calls, disappearing quorums, introducing multiple amendments, motions to adjourn, and other tricks. It seeks to quantify, categorize, and analyze the "filibuster" in two periods: the historical Senate prior to 1901 and the modern Senate ever since.
Koger does a nice job of giving us all of the different types of obstruction and some clear examples of when they were used, though it is a little difficult to keep up with the various rules changes. However, Koger does do a good job describing the changes that brought us to the current state of play: the use of Senate holds and the transition from defeating filibusters by attrition (wearing out the filibustering party) to addressing them by accommodation and outrage. That largely occurred during Mike Mansfield's time as Senate Majority leader in the 1960s and 1970s. The author also demonstrates that obstruction is not some hallowed institution of the Senate and, in fact, has more historical underpinnings in the House than the Senate. It will give you a reason to roll your eyes when you hear Senators of either political party describe why minority filibusters are so important to the world's "greatest" deliberative body.
Unfortunately for those concerned about Congressional gridlock, the book also shows how previous efforts at reform have done little to limit the filibuster and in many ways enhanced it by institutionalizing it. Only radical reform in the House prior to 1900, extremely unlikely in the modern day Senate, successfully snuffed out filibuster activity.
The book is a quick read and I recommend it for any student of Congress.Filibustering: A Political History of Obstruction in the House and Senate (Chicago Studies in American Politics) Overview

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