UNITED STATES—President Joe Biden held his first press briefing on Thursday, March 25, in the East Room at The White House. He had notes in hand and discussed a variety of topics before fielding questions from the press.
During the 1 hour and 2 minute briefing, President Biden named Vice President Kamala Harris to take a leading role in the immigration effort at the U.S. border. “[I] couldn’t think of anyone that would be better for the job,” said Biden in a statement.
“That’s why I’ve asked the Vice President of the United States, yesterday, to be the lead person on dealing with focusing on the fundamental reasons why people leave Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador in the first place. It’s because of earthquakes, floods. It’s because of lack of food. It’s because of gang violence. It’s because of a whole range of things.”
Reporters kept referencing a filibuster to Biden as a possible answer to the disagreement over bills between the House and Senate.
Records indicate the longest filibuster in history was on August 29, 1953. Strom Thurmond held a filibuster in the U.S. Senate in opposition to the Civil Rights Act that lasted 24 hours and 18 minutes. The filibuster did not prevent the passage of the bill.
Members of the House and Senate would be provided milk or water, and no one would be permitted to leave the room, including to use the restroom. The threat of a filibuster may lead to members of Congress trying to find a solution to the passage of a bill.
One of Biden’s statements made during the briefing went viral on social media referring to his time in the U.S. Senate. Radio show hosts, Rick and Bubba replayed that portion of the speech asking out loud if possibly Biden’s statement was meant as a joke.
“Filibuster. Filibuster. You know, with regard to the filibuster, I believe we should go back to a position on the filibuster that existed just when I came to the United States Senate 120 years ago,” Biden said to the press.
In his final question, a reporter asked, “Have you had any talks with Senate Republicans who are threatening this administration with not considering the immigration legislation that was passed in the House until the situation at the border has been resolved?”
Biden replied, “No, because I know they have to posture for a while. They sort of got to get it out of their system. This is a — but I’m ready to work with any Republican who wants to help solve the problem and make the situation better.”
