The McConnell filibuster is not the same as the Jim Crow filibuster – it's much worse | David Litt

For decades senators blocked civil rights legislation but allowed democracy to function elsewhere - now next to nothing passes

President Obama chooses his words carefully. So last July, when he punctuated his eulogy to the civil rights legend John Lewis by calling the Senate filibuster another relic of Jim Crow", he wasn't messing around.

Many others (myself included) had written about the historical link between the Senate rule allowing a minority of lawmakers to kill a bill and the preservation of white supremacy. But Obama's speech sparked a wholesale rebranding. Today, among progressive politicians and activists alike, End the filibuster" is out. End the Jim Crow filibuster" is in.