But the magic of the filibuster is that it’s a test of human stamina: The maneuver can’t leave the floor, so the speech lasts as long as the bladder does. By using a tag-team approach, the Democrats weren’t enduring anything but a lost hour or two of sleep.
Still, they figured their antics in the wee hours would display their dedication for all Americans to see — or at least insomniacs who watch
C-SPAN2. It also might impress Democratic donors. As The Post’s Ed O’Keefe reported, Democratic senators discussed plans for the filibuster last month at a fundraiser held by liberal billionaire Thomas Steyer.
“We hope that by [senators] staying up all night to discuss climate change, tomorrow will signal a new dawn of climate-change action in Congress,” said Sen. Ed Markey (Mass.).
That’s a lofty sentiment, but there’s no real prospect of the Senate, much less the Republican-controlled House, moving to limit carbon emissions in the next few years. For now, environmentalists are putting their hope in Obama’s Climate Action Plan, which includes efforts by the Environmental Protection Agency to limit carbon dioxide emissions from power plants and other polluters. At the same time, efforts to boost efficiency and alternative fuels have begun to reduce Americans’ carbon output.
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