filibuster
Part of speech: noun
verb
Morphological type: simple
Topics: government
politics
Etymology: Borrowed from Spanish filibustero (“pirate”), from French flibustier, ultimately from Dutch vrijbuiter (“freebooter”), from vrij (“free”) + buit (“booty”) + -er (“agent”). The alteration in the first syllable in French is due to the word's being somewhat conflated with vlieboot (“light, flat-bottomed cargo vessel with two or three masts”) when it was borrowed into French or another language from Dutch. The word is cognate and analogous to English freebooter.
Inflected forms:
form: filibusters
pos: noun
tags: plural
form: fillibuster
pos: noun
tags: alternative
form: filibusters
pos: verb
tags: present
singular
third-person
form: filibustering
pos: verb
tags: participle
present
form: filibustered
pos: verb
tags: participle
past
form: filibustered
pos: verb
tags: past
form: fillibuster
pos: verb
tags: alternative
Senses:
gloss: A mercenary soldier; a freebooter; specifically, a mercenary who travelled illegally in an organized group from the United States to a country in Central America or the Spanish West Indies in the mid-19th century seeking economic and political benefits through armed force.
pos: noun
tags: historical
examples: These duties involved prodigious physical and mental exertion, in a climate deadly to Europeans. They also involved much voyaging in waters haunted by filibusters and buccaneers. But nothing appears to daunt Labat. As for the filibusters, he becomes their comrade and personal friend;—he even becomes their chaplain, and does not scruple to make excursions with them.
Mexico's War of Independence (1810–1821) encouraged an increase in the activity of filibusters in northern Mexico, particularly Texas. Spain's concentration on repressing independence movements within Mexico created opportunities for filibusters to seize control of its northern frontier regions.
Filibusters were American citizens who used armed force to procure economic and political influence beyond the borders of the United States from 1848–1861. Their efforts were directed mainly southward toward Cuba, Mexico, and the Central American republics. These illegal excursions disrupted diplomatic relations of the United States within its own hemisphere by damaging relations with Latin American countries and the United Kingdom.
As they attempted to use the international press to their advantage, the filibusters were eager to counter any articles they perceived as misrepresenting their actions. […] [T]he filibusters took issue with what they called the "Boletinero de Costarica" and its outspoken condemnation of the filibuster presence in Nicaragua. […] Costa Rican periodicals were especially scorned by the filibusters for their constant rallying cries against the US usurpers.
gloss: A tactic (such as giving long, often irrelevant speeches) employed to delay the proceedings of, or the making of a decision by, a legislative body, particularly the United States Senate.
pos: noun
tags: US
examples: No longer do filibustering Senators take the floor and speak until they are physically unable to filibuster any longer. Now, a filibuster typically begins when a Senator or group of Senators signals their intent to filibuster – which can be done by a private conversation with the majority leader or by quietly placing a bill or nomination on hold. Given the modern Senate's scarce floor time, this threat is usually enough to table the disputed issue until the dissenting Senators cave or until there are definitely enough votes to invoke cloture.
Then, last month, before the survey was finished and for reasons still unclear, the Democrats abruptly tried to attach a repeal of the law to the defence appropriations bill, a stratagem the Republicans defeated in a filibuster.
So now that the Republicans have used the nuclear option to kill the poor filibuster to clear the way for the elevation of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court, we can lose perspective.
By this theory, the Democratic Party is kept out of power by a white Republican minority that thwarts the popular will through voter suppression, gerrymandering, judicial legislating, the filibuster, the composition of the Senate, and the Electoral College.
gloss: A member of a legislative body causing such an obstruction.
pos: noun
tags: US
gloss: To take part in a private military action in a foreign country.
pos: verb
examples: According to U.S. law, filibustering was a violation of the Neutrality Law of 1818, which prohibited the organization within the United States of any armed force that intended to attack a friendly foreign power. The American government attempted, through the enforcement of this law, to prevent its citizens from filibustering, mostly by preventing potential filibustering groups from organizing and collecting arms for future operations.
gloss: To use obstructionist tactics in a legislative body.
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
transitive
examples: But as the case had dragged on interminably, and he believed, and the world believed, and the Canadians themselves knew, that they intended to filibuster and postpone as long as possible, he took the common-sense way to a settlement.
1901—Senator Carter successfully filibustered a river and harbor bill because it failed to include certain additional appropriations.
No longer do filibustering Senators take the floor and speak until they are physically unable to filibuster any longer. Now, a filibuster typically begins when a Senator or group of Senators signals their intent to filibuster – which can be done by a private conversation with the majority leader or by quietly placing a bill or nomination on hold. Given the modern Senate's scarce floor time, this threat is usually enough to table the disputed issue until the dissenting Senators cave or until there are definitely enough votes to invoke cloture.
Meanwhile, back in Eastleigh, away from the filibustering in Westminster, Chris Huhne was able to concentrate on constituency business.
So it was that the day before Trump’s big unveiling, Democrat Jeff Merkley publicly vowed to filibuster whomever the president named.
Related words: flibustier
obstruct
cloture
Derived words: antifilibuster
filibusterable
filibusterer
filibusterism
filibusterous
filibustress
Translations: