To research my Friday column on the Mississippi Constitution of 1890 and the Lodge federal elections bill, I spent a lot of time on JSTOR, a searchable database for primary sources and academic research. I found a lot of stuff I didn't use, including an 1893 article by Senator Henry Cabot Lodge of Massachusetts, published in The North American Review and titled "Obstruction in the Senate." |
It's a short piece, arguing against the tradition of unlimited debate in the chamber. The background to Lodge's argument, as I explore in my column, is that when he was a member of the House in 1891 his federal elections bill was killed by a Democratic filibuster after months of delay and obstruction. |
I want to highlight one section in particular that with few adjustments could be published today as an argument against the filibuster as it currently exists. |
"Practically speaking," Lodge writes, "each Senator can speak as often and at as great length as he chooses. There is not only no previous question to cut him off, but a time cannot even be set for taking a vote, except by unanimous consent." He continues: |
This is all very well in theory, and there is much to be said for the maintenance of a system, in one branch at least of the government, where debate shall be entirely untrammelled. But the essence of a system of courtesy is that it should be the same at all points. The two great rights in our representative bodies are voting and debate. If the courtesy of unlimited debate is granted it must carry with it the reciprocal courtesy of permitting a vote after due discussion. If this is not the case the system is impossible. |
There are more lines like that in the piece. For instance, Lodge says: "To vote without debating is perilous, but to debate and never vote is imbecile. The difficulty in the Senate today is that, while the courtesy which permits unlimited debate is observed, the reciprocal courtesy, which should insure the opportunity to vote, is wholly disregarded." |
He concludes his argument with a point that defenders of the filibuster would do well to heed: "How the Senate may vote on any given question at any given time is of secondary importance, but when it is seen that it is unable to take any action at all, the situation becomes of the gravest character. A body which cannot govern itself will not long hold the respect of the people who have chosen it to govern the country." |
My Tuesday column was on President Biden's brief address in support of labor rights, which was much more groundbreaking than it might seem at first glance. |
Biden is not the first president to speak in support of unions, but he may be the first to speak so publicly — and so directly — in their favor (certainly since Harry Truman). The words themselves are ordinary, but the context, an American president speaking in support of the most high profile organizing drive in the country, makes them extraordinary. And that, in turn, raises expectations for what Biden can and should accomplish as president on behalf of the labor movement. |
My Friday column, as I said at the top, was on the twin stories of the Mississippi Constitution of 1890 and the Lodge federal elections bill, and what lessons they may hold for our own time. |
By the end of the decade, in 1900, most of the rest of the South had followed Mississippi down the path of official white supremacy and total suppression of Black voting. Circumstances varied from state to state, but the dynamics were the same: first came biracial agrarian rebellion, then new constitutions, new restrictions, and a new equilibrium of white elite dominance over land, labor and capital. |
I also joined my former colleague Aisha Harris on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour, to talk about the new movie "The United States v. Billie Holiday" and depictions of the F.B.I. on film. |
Michael Kazin on the future of the Democratic Party coalition in The New Republic. |
Rebecca Sun on the actress Kelly Marie Tran in The Hollywood Reporter. |
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If you're enjoying what you're reading, please consider recommending it to your friends. They can sign up here. If you want to share your thoughts on an item in this week's newsletter or on the newsletter in general, please email me at jamelle-newsletter@nytimes.com. |
I have been in a rut for the past month, so instead of a new photo, here's another one from the archive. I took this in February 2016 in Washington D.C.'s Chinatown, on my way home from work. I had a mini tripod on me, so I set it up on the sidewalk and went to work. I believe that I was using a Fujifilm point-and-shoot camera. |
Now Eating: Chicken (or Paneer) in a Yogurt-Tomato Cream Sauce |
The recipe name tells you all you need to know. You make a yogurt-tomato sauce, you add a protein (I used chicken, but pan-fried paneer works too), you simmer, and you finish with cream and cilantro. It is very good and best served with flatbreads and a vegetable. Recipe is adapted from Julie Sahni's "Classic Indian Cooking," a wonderful book that you should own. |
- 4 large cloves garlic, peeled
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger
- 3 medium-size ripe tomatoes (about ¾ pound)
- 1 cup plain, full-fat yogurt
- ¼ cup neutral oil, such as canola or grapeseed
- 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1½-inch cubes (or 2 pounds fresh Indian cheese, cubed and pan-fried)
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 tablespoons ground blanched almonds
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon ground fennel seed
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- ½ cup heavy cream (or less, depending on your taste or how low-fat you want it to be)
- 3 teaspoons freshly ground pepper
- ¼ cup cilantro, finely chopped
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Put garlic, ginger, tomatoes and yogurt into the container of a blender or food processor, and run the machine until the ingredients are reduced to a fine, smooth purée. |
Heat oil in a large saucepan or 12-inch skillet with lid over medium-high heat. Add the purée and cook until it reduces to a thick sauce, about 15 minutes. |
If you're using chicken, add and cook for 5 minutes, stirring so that nothing burns. Add the spices and salt and mix well. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 15 minutes. |
(If you're using paneer, add along with a cup of water. Add the spices and salt and mix well. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 15 minutes.) |
Uncover and continue cooking until the sauce has reduced, another 15 minutes. Stir in the cream, black pepper and cilantro, and turn off the heat. Serve as you'd like! |
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