Letter to the editor: Poland's 'Liberum veto' in action here

I know most people find history boring. Please indulge me.

In the 1700s, Poland was ruled by a king and a parliament made up the country’s largest landowners. The parliament operated under the “liberum veto.” Any member of the Polish parliament could single-handedly veto any piece of legislation. Sound familiar?

The liberum veto paralyzed Poland’s government. In three successive “Partitions,” Poland was gobbled up by Prussia, Austria and Russia. By 1795, Poland had disappeared from the map of Europe.

Under a rule accepted by the former House speaker, any single member of Congress can call for the speaker to “vacate” his office. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., did so, and Speaker Kevin McCarthy was duly thrown out. The House of Representatives is now paralyzed in a state of chaos.

In the Senate, any single senator can block the appointment of any government official requiring Senate approval. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ga., has used this to block the appointment of nearly 300 high- ranking military officers, crippling the functioning of our military and throwing it into chaos. Furthermore the Senate ordinarily operates under the “filibuster rule,” allowing any single senator to indefinitely delay any piece of legislation. It is why, for example, no one even tries anymore to introduce legislation to reform our immigration system. The filibuster rule is our version of the liberum veto.

If you wonder why it seems nothing gets fixed anymore, there is the answer. We can only hope that this country does not suffer the same fate as Poland 250 years ago.

Robert Supansic

McKeesport