Is it really a majority?

The U.S. Senate.

The media says the "majority" has gone to the Democrats: 50 Reps vs 50 Dems + the VP.

But the real number is: 50 Reps, 48 Dems, 2 Independents and the VP as the tie breaking vote (or 49 Dems).

Yes, the 2 Independents typically vote with the "Democrat Caucus", but they remain Independents. When running for re-election, they run against the Reps and the Dems.

So... do the Dems really have a "majority"?

If you were the GOP (in general) and Mitch McConnell (in particular) would you just sit back and give up the power of the "majority"?

I wouldn't. I would claim that the GOP still maintains the majority over the Dems, and the majority over the Independents. I'd even take it to the Supreme Court if necessary (though I doubt the Supreme Court would hear the case).

I would also call out the two Independents, and claim that they should officially pick a party.

At a minimum I would call for a Senate wide vote to determine a who really has the majority.

Don't get me wrong, I full expect the GOP to acknowledge that the Dems have the "majority", but I wouldn't give up with out a "fight".

That's why we really need a multi-party system. Certain parties may band together on certain issues, while a different collection would solidify for others.

And you can't count on Dems to always vote in lock-step blindness with The Party. Some of them tend to think for themselves.

That's why it was so hard to pass Obamacare. They had to water it down and fatten it with pork to get all the Dems on board, while the GOPer-Lemmings just blindly voted NO, even though some admitted Obamacare was a good thing.

Yup. That kinda if a major flaw in the system.

If we go full out two parties, sanders and the other dude need to just admit they democrats

If we go multi party, gop would still have majority.

I think we’re pretty strong two party system so I don’t think it’s gonna change now. Though Mitch is that petty.

The idea of "non-partisan" democracy has appeared throughout history. Alas, this always seems to evolve into some sort of Party system, where true "independents" - who will judge issues purely upon merit - are rarely elected.

In the news:

The top two Senate leaders are nearing a power-sharing agreement to hash out how the evenly divided chamber will operate, with Democrats in charge of setting the schedule but both parties likely to hold an equal number of seats on Senate committees, according to sources familiar with the talks.

So the Dems will only be sort of in charge.

I don't trust Moscow Mitch... I guess we'll have to wait and see....

You really do hate Sanders don’t you?

It’s all based on implied vote. Like much of the Senate rules are. I mean, they could ditch these kind of rules and be forced to vote on everything...from the leaders to the committees to everything else. But it would end up with the same result. It just saves time.

Hate?

No, I don't hate him.

My view of Sanders is based on reality, he is a self centered fake.



Note: This thread was not meant to be about Sanders.

Dems will never have the majority because Mitchy is power-hungry and would never hand the reins over to anyone. He would retire before that happened. lol!