By Mark Swanson | Monday, 03 November 2025 06:22 PM EST
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., reaffirmed his support for maintaining the Senate filibuster, stating Monday that the issue arose during discussions with President Donald Trump over the weekend.
Trump has repeatedly urged Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., to eliminate the filibuster to restart government operations, but Thune, Johnson, and other Republicans have consistently opposed the move. The debate centers on the 60-vote threshold required to pass a continuing resolution and end the government shutdown. Without the filibuster, Republicans could secure the 50 votes needed to approve stopgap funding.
“I understand desperate times call for desperate measures; I also understand that traditionally, we’ve seen that as an important safeguard,” Johnson told reporters Monday. “I obviously shared my thoughts with the president on that.”
Johnson acknowledged past frustrations with the filibuster but emphasized that Senate Republicans, including some of the most conservative members, view it as a critical check on Democratic policies. He argued it prevents reckless actions by blocking what he described as Democrats’ “worst impulses.”
Johnson warned that abolishing the filibuster would embolden Democrats to pursue drastic measures, such as expanding the Supreme Court, granting statehood to Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, restricting Second Amendment rights, and federalizing election systems.
Thune reiterated Monday that there is insufficient support to eliminate the filibuster, a position he has previously defended. Trump, meanwhile, criticized Republicans for being “weak and stupid” during a Saturday address, urging them to remove the rule. He also advocated for ending the filibuster in a Sunday interview.
Johnson, however, remained resolute, stating, “If the shoe was on the other foot, I don’t think our team would like it.”
