By TL Neckles

By any honest measure, Democrats are running out of time to decide who they want to be in the Senate: the party of norms, or the party that finally understands the stakes.

Because the Republican Party already made its choice.

When Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville single‑handedly froze hundreds of military promotions for months, he proved something Democrats have spent years pretending not to see: the Senate’s rules are only as sacred as the party willing to break them. Tuberville didn’t care about precedent, readiness, or national security. He cared about leverage—and he used it.

And he got away with it.

So the question hanging over Chuck Schumer and Senate Democrats is not abstract, not procedural, not academic. It’s brutally simple:

When will Democrats stop playing by rules the other side abandoned years ago?

The Senate Is a Knife Fight—Democrats Keep Showing Up With Mittens
Republicans have demonstrated, repeatedly, that they are willing to use every inch of Senate procedure to achieve their goals. They slow‑walk nominees. They weaponize holds. They grind the floor to a halt. They block judges for years, then confirm Supreme Court justices in weeks.

Democrats, meanwhile, keep insisting that “norms” will save them.

Norms didn’t save Merrick Garland.
Norms didn’t save Roe.
Norms didn’t save the Voting Rights Act.
Norms didn’t save the CFPB, the EPA, or the NLRB from being gutted.

And norms will not save the country from a second Trump administration.

The Tools Are There—The Question Is Whether Democrats Will Use Them
Democrats have the same procedural arsenal Republicans used under Obama and Biden:

• Holds on nominees
• Objections to unanimous consent
• Demanding full debate time
• Forcing roll‑call votes on everything
• Committee slowdowns
• Calendar control (if they hold the majority)

These are not radical. These are not unprecedented. These are the rules.

The only thing unprecedented is Democrats’ refusal to use them with the same intensity Republicans do.

Tuberville Showed the Blueprint
Tuberville’s blockade was reckless, dangerous, and irresponsible. But it was also a master class in how much power a single senator can wield when they stop caring about being polite.

Democrats condemned him.
Republicans shrugged.
The military suffered.
And the Senate learned nothing.

Because instead of saying, “Never again,” Democrats said, “We would never.”

That is not a strategy. That is surrender.

This Is Not the Era for Gentle Governance
If Democrats believe Trump’s agenda is dangerous, then they cannot simultaneously believe that “regular order” is the appropriate response. You don’t counter a bulldozer with a parliamentary sigh.

If Democrats believe democracy is at stake, then they cannot keep acting like the Senate is a graduate seminar where everyone gets points for civility.

If Democrats believe the country is in danger, then they must act like it.

The Moment of Decision Is Coming
When Trump begins sending nominees to the Senate—judges, cabinet officials, agency heads—Democrats will face a choice:

Will they use every tool available, or will they once again choose the comfort of norms over the responsibility of power?

History is not kind to parties that refuse to fight for the future they claim to believe in.

Republicans have already shown what they’re willing to do.
Tuberville showed what one senator can do.
The question now is whether Democrats will finally understand the lesson.

Because if they don’t, they won’t just lose a procedural battle.
They’ll lose the country they’re trying to protect.