MACKINAC — During a Senate Democratic primary debate at the Mackinac Policy Conference on Thursday, Representative Haley Stevens called for eliminating the filibuster to codify health care while also asserting the filibuster should have been used to block a Republican tax bill that was exempt from the 60-vote threshold. Her remarks prompted questions from moderator Stephen Henderson and drew criticism for appearing to reflect a misunderstanding of Senate procedural rules.

Stevens said, "The filibuster must go so that we can codify health care," and later added, "We should use the filibuster to not allow the big ugly bill to pass that increased our debt." When asked to clarify, she stated, "I said I want to remove the filibuster." She explained, "I’m saying that I want to change the rules, of which I’ve been a part of. I’ve voted for rules packages on behalf of the people of Michigan. I believe — Stephen, what I said is we should remove the filibuster so Democrats could have voted down the legislation, the tax bill. That’s what I was saying. Democrats should have been able to vote down the tax bill."

Republicans passed the tax legislation extending President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts last year on a party-line vote. The bill was exempt from the filibuster under the budget reconciliation process, which allows certain tax and spending measures to pass with a simple majority. The filibuster rule was in place at the time but did not apply to that legislation. Bernadette Breslin, a National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesperson, said Stevens’ "filibuster word salad wasn’t some innocent gaffe; it exposed her inability to articulate a basic talking point" and her "ignorance" of the Senate.

Stevens’ spokesperson Caitlin Legacki defended her position, saying, "Haley has been very consistent: She supports eliminating the filibuster to do what’s right for Michigan families, including to codify abortion rights and raise the minimum wage. She believes the filibuster led to Republicans’ use of the reconciliation process that resulted in devastating cuts to Michiganders’ health care so they could offset tax cuts for billionaires."