Former White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany called on Republicans Thursday to “nuke the filibuster” for spending bills.
On Truth Social, President Donald Trump urged Republicans to eliminate the Senate filibuster to end the shutdown, but his call is unlikely to gain traction among GOP senators who remain opposed to scrapping the 60-vote rule.
During a panel discussion on “The Five,” McEnany said Republicans should nuke the filibuster specifically for spending bills.
“Let me propose a very simple solution here. Filibuster, not in the Constitution. Filibuster, not passed legislatively. Filibuster can be removed for the sole purpose of spending bills. You can just remove the filibuster to open the government,” McEnany said.
“When military members are hurting, when we are not safe in the skies, it is time to nuke the filibuster for spending bills because Democrats are hurting our country.”
McEnany emphasized that no one is winning in the ongoing government shutdown. She criticized Democrats for refusing to support measures that would pay military members and essential workers despite having the chance to do so.
“Let me make this really simple. No one’s winning. Not Republicans, not Democrats. When military members cannot pay their bills, when air traffic controllers are calling out because they get zeros on their paycheck, when our safety is at issue in the skies, no one is winning,” McEnany said. “We are all losing. And why? Because Democrats, they got a chance to vote to pay the military. Fine, you don’t want to open up the government? How about pay the military essential workers?”
She pointed out that only three Democrats voted to pay military members: John Fetterman, Raphael Warnock, and Jon Ossoff.
“Three. John Fetterman, Raphael Warnock, and Jon Ossoff. Three Democrats voted to pay the military. Now John Kennedy says, ‘Let’s vote to remove our pay until military members get paid.’ Can’t wait to see how many Democrats vote on that.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Democrats have repeatedly used the filibuster to block a House-passed bipartisan spending bill 14 times. Although Republicans could reopen the government by voting to end the 60-vote rule, most GOP senators oppose changing it and refuse to support eliminating the filibuster.
Republican Utah Sen. John Curtis defended the filibuster, writing on X, “The filibuster forces us to find common ground in the Senate. Power changes hands, but principles shouldn’t.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson also explained the downsides of eliminating the filibuster. “The filibuster has traditionally been viewed as a very important safeguard,” Johnson said. “If the shoe was on the other foot, I don’t think our team would like it.”
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https://dailycaller.com/2025/11/06/kayleigh-mcenany-reasons-nuke-filibuster/
