The filibuster started out very differently from how it is currently used. According to the Associated Press, the Senate filibuster was etched into the popular American imagination via the 1939 Jimmy Stewart film, “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.” The movie portrayed Stewart’s character as a passionate man of conviction who gave a speech on the Senate floor to the point of exhaustion.

The filibuster indeed used to be such a tactic. With no limits on speaking times, senators would orate continually in order to delay a vote. It was used most notably by conservative Senator Strom Thurmond of South Carolina, who spoke for over 24 hours in an attempt to block the Civil Rights Act of 1957. Conservatives have also shown that, in addition to overtly racist, the filibuster can also be utterly silly. As the BBC reported in 2013, Ted Cruz ended up running out of things to say during his 21-hour filibuster speech that year, so he began reading from Dr. Seuss’ “Green Eggs and Ham” right on the Senate floor.

The modern filibuster is much different, however, now consisting of a 60-vote requirement to pass a bill. A Senator merely has to express intent to filibuster a bill, and the vote requirement is raised. It is less about delaying votes now, and more about making bills more difficult to pass at all. Democrats have been unable to come to a consensus on whether or not to end the filibuster, so its future remains unclear for the moment.