Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) announced Monday that he has reversed his position on the Senate filibuster, signaling new momentum behind President Trump’s push to eliminate the 60-vote requirement needed to advance most legislation. Mullin’s shift brings him into alignment with Trump as Republicans brace for what many expect could be another government shutdown showdown in January.
“My position on the filibuster has changed,” Mullin wrote on X. “Let’s go all in.”
For years, Mullin had leaned toward preserving the filibuster, echoing concerns shared by many Republicans that removing the rule would ultimately empower Democrats. But speaking on Fox News host Will Cain’s “Will Cain Country” podcast, the Oklahoma senator explained that recent conversations with GOP leadership convinced him the risk of inaction now outweighs the danger of reform.
“I kind of leaned on the side of… ‘should we really nuke the filibuster?’ Because once you do that, it is nuclear,” Mullin said. “It opens the door wide open. And I was like, ‘why would we open the door wide open for the Democrats?’”
That calculus changed after a meeting with party leaders. Mullin said he posed a blunt question: whether anyone truly believed Democrats would preserve the filibuster once it suited their interests. “If they do [nuke it], they’re going to go after all the courts,” he warned, citing Democratic proposals to dramatically expand the Supreme Court. “They’re not talking 13 or 11 anymore. Now they’re saying 23.”
Mullin also pointed to long-standing Democratic priorities like granting statehood to Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and possibly Guam. Given those ambitions, he argued Republicans should stop playing defense and move aggressively to enact policy while they have the votes.
President Trump has intensified calls to eliminate the filibuster, especially after Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) rallied Democrats during the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. With Republicans holding 53 Senate seats, the filibuster remains a powerful tool for Democrats to block legislation, including budget measures.
Not all Republicans are on board. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has publicly dismissed the idea, saying earlier this month that “the math is not there” to change the rule. Still, Mullin’s reversal highlights growing frustration among rank-and-file senators.
Mullin dismissed concerns that Democrats could later undo Republican accomplishments. If Republicans pass “sound policy,” he argued, Democrats would pay a political price for dismantling it. “If it’s good policy and they undo everything… maybe it’ll backfire on them,” he said.
The debate is heating up ahead of a January 30 funding deadline, when Schumer has hinted Democrats could again force a shutdown. With pressure mounting, the fight over the filibuster may soon move from theory to reality.
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