Rep. Steube to Newsmax: Senate GOP Should 'Nuke the Filibuster'

Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., told Newsmax on Friday that Senate Republicans should eliminate the filibuster to pass funding for the Department of Homeland Security, saying it is the only way to end the nearly month-long shutdown affecting key federal security agencies.

Appearing on Newsmax's "National Report," Steube said the Senate's 60-vote threshold is allowing Democrats to block legislation that the Republican-controlled House has already approved multiple times.

"I have called on leadership in the Senate since October to nuke the filibuster and fund the federal government," he said.

Eliminating the 60-vote rule would allow Senate Republicans, who hold a simple majority, to pass legislation with 51 votes instead of needing Democrat support.

Steube argued that ending the filibuster is necessary if Republicans want to deliver on the agenda voters supported in the last election.

"The American people elected a Republican House, a Republican Senate, and Donald Trump in the White House," he said. "And they're very frustrated by the fact that leadership has to go to [Senate Minority Leader] Chuck Schumer [D-N.Y.] to pass a bill to fund the basic elements of the federal government."

The Florida Republican noted that key security personnel are continuing to work without pay during the DHS funding lapse, including members of the Coast Guard in his home state.

"Those guys and gals aren't getting paid," Steube said. "Obviously in the great state of Florida, the Coast Guard is a very important piece of our national security and our homeland security."

He also warned that other federal agencies that handle disaster response are being affected by the shutdown.

"You've got FEMA [Federal Emergency Management Agency] that's not being funded," Steube said. "Thank God we're not in hurricane season right now."

The House has repeatedly passed legislation to fund DHS, he said, but those bills have stalled in the Senate.

"I think we've passed this bill five times out of the House," Steube said. "It was an appropriations bill in December, an appropriations bill in January, two separate appropriation packages just for DHS, and we passed it again last week to go to the Senate and die because Democrats won't vote for it."

The congressman said the stalemate will continue unless Senate Republicans are willing to eliminate the filibuster.

"You've got 53 Republicans in the Senate that are refusing to do away with the 60-vote threshold," he said. "That's the only way this changes."

Steube cautioned that the federal government's ability to respond to terror attacks — like Thursday's attack on a Michigan synagogue and shooting at Old Dominion University in Virginia — could be affected if the shutdown continues.

Steube cautioned that the federal government's ability to respond to terror attacks — like Thursday's in Virginia — could be impacted if the shutdown continues.

"You're going to see other attacks in the homeland, and it's not like we can't respond because we still have Homeland Security officers there — just not getting paid," he said. "At some point, like what you're seeing with TSA [Transportation Security Administration], you're going to see people not being able to work because they're not being able to provide for their families."

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