U.S. Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M. (Photo by Heath Haussamen)
U.S. Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., is proposing changing the way the Senate does business, and Congressional Quarterly is giving his ideas a lot of attention.
In a new feature on its Web site headlined “Can the Senate be fixed?” Congressional Quarterly writes:
“Pick the adjective — broken, dysfunctional, gridlocked. In the minds of many observers, they all apply to the modern Senate. The perception, particularly after this year’s health care votes, is that this is an institution gone badly off track, where procedural and partisan wrangling has entangled the nation’s business at a time when the country needs an efficient, functioning government more than ever. That’s why a group of younger Democrats is studying past efforts to change the Senate’s rules.”
Udall is one of three people – and the only senator – featured in video interviews that are part of the CQ “broken Senate” story. I’ve written before on Udall’s proposals to reform the Senate, but there’s much more depth in the CQ feature.
Check it out by clicking here.