Filibustering is a pretty cutty political move. Conceptually it’s very simple however in reality it’s actually quite difficult to pull off. If a politician wants to block a proposed law from passing, they just debate it for so damn long that people run out of time to actually vote: that’s filibustering. Literally ‘talking a bill to death’.
Because it’s kind of mental, people generally reserve filibusters for their last ditch resort-though they can have pretty stunning results. Texan senator Wendy Davis made news around the world in 2013 after filibustering for over 10 hours to block an anti-abortion bill.
Now another female politician is at it, though her filibuster is making news for different reasons. The Missouri Democratic senator Marie Chappelle-Nadal tried to block a bill she didn’t agree with by reading from 50 Cent’s advice book, The 50th Law, for over an hour. The bill could have created a new sales tax, designed to fund the police. Marie believes Missouri police shouldn’t be getting any extra cash flow funding until they address a number of issues: namely, the way they handled protests in Ferguson. Marie’s reading worked, and the bill has been tabled-for now.
50’s book is part autobiographical reflection on his career, part advice on the hustle, plus a good dose of wisdom from thinkers and activists like Socrates and Malcolm X. It was a New York Times bestseller.