Democratic Senators: Do Your Job!

[UPDATE: Read our report [1] on how many of these measures already have majority support in the Senate.]

[UPDATE 2: Transcript of Conrad's remarks below the fold.]

[UPDATE 3: Want to call Majority Leader Reid to implore him to catch up with his party? DC Reid: 202-224-3542, Nevada Reid: 702-388-5020.]

[UPDATE 4: Taylor Marsh is eloquent [2].]

Stand with Kent Conrad. Even this timid, moderate Demcoratic senator from the conservative state of North Dakota wants his fellow senators to "let the American people see just how obstructionist this Republican minority is being" by forcing the Republicans to stand up and and actually filibuster.

Senator Conrad says there's a "growing consensus that we ought to do that."

It hasn't grown enough - because they're not doing it yet.

OpenLeft [3] urges you to call your Democratic senators. They're also urging you to sign our petition [4]. Tell your Democratic senators to demand that the Republicans who are thwarting the people's will on purpose, as a strategy - on issues so basic as medical research, the minimum wage, and rest for the troops - stand up for 24 hours and explain to the American people why they are against these things.

Force Senator Reid to do his job: serve the people's will by forcing the Republcians to stand up and actually filibuster the Democrats' massively popular legislative agenda.

What Senator Conrad said [5]:

Cenk: Exactly, that's a perfect situation. We're actually going to make you physically filibuster it. Go ahead and give speeches for 24 hours a day. We're removing the rule that out of politeness and courtesy that we don't make you do that anymore. We're going to have you go and read the phone book, and tell us how much you're against stem cells or the minimum wage, or for rest for the troops.

Senator Kent Conrad: Yeah, I think there's a growing consensus that we ought to do that...I think that we could do a better job making our points, and one part of that is to let the American people see just how obstructionist this Republican minority is being. The leader has had to file cloture now over 40 times already this year. And cloture, as you know, is a special procedure to stop debate, to stop filibusters, in order to reach conclusion on legislation. I had a Republican colleague tell me it is the Republican strategy to try to prevent any accomplishment of the Democratic Congress. That is set in their caucus openly and directly that they don't intend to allow Democrats to have any legislative successes, and they intend to do it by repeated filibuster.