I want to ensure you saw my op-ed in The Hill from yesterday in which I call on a few courageous leaders to prevent the Senate from toppling "the last major hurdle to single party rule in Washington." Click here to read it.

The damage from the weeks-long government shutdown is worsening by the day. Soon, funds for public health clinics and food assistance could run out.

Neither party appears willing to budge. As I point out: "Leader Schumer has broken with long standing practice by refusing to accept a clean continuing resolution, potentially creating the very conditions that bring about his worst nightmare: Republicans ending the shutdown on their terms."

That could very well mean eliminating the filibuster—the rule that requires 60 votes for most legislation—so Republicans can reopen the government on their own without Democratic votes. Multiple Republican Senators are already calling for this.

It would be a disaster for America. Once the filibuster is gone, it will be gone for good, meaning future majorities of either party would have little incentive to work with the other side.

How do we avert the disaster? I propose a Hail Mary bipartisan deal, from leaders like Senator Susan Collins and Rep. Josh Gottheimer, that reopens the government and preserves the filibuster.

"Think back to the infrastructure deal in 2021: A bipartisan group worked in advance to shape the deal as an alternative to Build Back Better, and they were ready to push it forward when all else had failed. We need the same now—a group to begin preparing a credible deal to reopen the government, even if it appears now that there is no appetite for one. That way, when public pressure crests and lawmakers feel the heat, going nuclear won’t appear to be the only path out.