WASHINGTON STATE

Washington State House Democrats

HOUSE DEMOCRATS

Distaste for Debate is Ominous Message from Senate

Things move a bit more quickly in the House of Representatives than in the Senate. We have twice as many members, we usually have more bills to consider, and we definitely have as many points of view as we have legislators.

As the House majority, Democrats incorporate the views, and bills, of all members, including Republicans. Which is why we find it curious when Senate Republican leadership talks about “squelching debate” in the House.

The vast majority of bills passed in the House have overwhelming support. Over 200 of the 325 bills we passed this session had 90 or more votes in favor (out of 98 total members). We had 275 bills – 85 percent – pass with 2/3rds support. Any bill that gets over a dozen votes from members of both parties is a fair definition of “bipartisan” if you ask us. Unlike the Senate Republicans, one member of the opposite party voting with the prevailing party isn’t what we call bipartisan. In the House, we passed a Republican bill for every two majority bills passed. That’s a pretty good ratio when compared to the Senate. For all the Senate Republicans’ talk about bipartisanship, Senate Republican leadership limited passage of Democratic bills to 25 percent.

In some cases, when deep philosophical disagreements are discussed, things can get a little heated. Floor debate on amendments alone can take hours to resolve. Long hours, firmly-held beliefs and a shortage of sleep mean things can get a bit testy. And that’s okay. It’s supposed to work like that. Fortunately, we have parliamentary rules to keep things focused and civil.

Take the Voting Rights Act, for example. On the 50th anniversary of the famous March on Selma, the House passed a bill that will ensure communities of color have a voice in government. It essentially allows local governments to find ways to encourage more minority representation. It’s simply a question of fairness. All Democrats and one Republican voted for the bill in the House after a spirited and respectful debate.

And this is the part that is troublesome about the Senate Republicans. When Senate Democrats tried to bring up the same bill for debate on the floor, Republican leadership resorted to the type of “tyranny” they claim would “never be acceptable in the Senate” to squelch debate.

The bill died without a single word spoken for or against it on the Senate floor.

And as for the minimum wage bill – the one, according to Senate leadership, that Democrats rushed off the floor? Debate ran one hour and 23 minutes. More Republicans than Democrats spoke about the bill.

Our form of government demands open and honest debate. When that doesn’t happen, we all lose. Hopefully, the Senate Republicans will remember that in the remaining weeks of the legislative session.