Dream Act Supporters Target Filibuster

Illegal-immigrant students and some House Democrats sued the Senate this week to try to overturn the upper chamber’s filibuster rule, arguing that the 60-vote threshold applied to most major legislation violates the Constitution and is blocking important legislation, such as legalization for illegal immigrants.

If successful, the lawsuit filed Monday would rewrite the way the Senate operates. But courts have generally been reluctant to meddle in internal congressional rules, making it an iffy question whether it would ever get to that point.

Still, the effort mixes two thorny issues: immigration and the separation of powers — and is likely to help keep the former in the news through this year’s presidential election.

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