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On the debt ceiling vote Senate Dems could force Republicans to find the votes themselves or make concessions- like no more kids in cages. Rs have 53 votes. It’d be perfectly responsible for Dems to to tell McConnell: we won’t filibuster but you have to find the votes to pass it.
The last time the debt ceiling was raised, 16 Senate Republicans voted against it. Maybe they could find the votes to pass it themselves now. But maybe not. If not, House Dems would have enormous leverage to force the Senate to accept a bill they could pass with only Dem votes. 
Senate Dems would not have to block a debt ceiling increase. They could provide consent to skip the filibuster on a clean increase & let it come to the floor for a final passage (simple majority)vote. But they could withhold their votes on passage, forcing Rs to do it themselves.
If Senate Republicans can pass a clean debt ceiling with just GOP votes, let them. Dems could still negotiate on approps. And setting the precedent that the majority can pass a clean debt ceiling if they can produce the votes themselves would be a good thing.
It is one thing to hold the debt ceiling hostage. But it’s entirely different to tell the majority, we won’t filibuster and if you can pass a clean debt ceiling increase yourselves, go for it. If not, you have to negotiate with us. That’s fair.
He may not be on board, but it kinda doesn’t matter? Republicans will either have the votes or be ~10 short. It would be preferable if Dems held together, but one or two breaking ranks probably won’t make the difference.
There’s not much any individual senator can do to block this process. If Democrats are declining to filibuster, there will always be 60+ votes and/or unanimous consent to move the clean bill forward over the procedural hurdles.
One irony here is that this is not some arcane strategy, it’s just how the Senate used to work. The minority used to routinely provide the votes or unanimous consent to overcome the 60-vote cloture threshold and let bills come to the floor to pass or fail on a majority vote.
A side effect of filibusters becoming routine is that McConnell has relied on Dem votes to raise the debt ceiling while letting his own members off the hook. Here is a former McConnell aide arguing it would be irresponsibile to *not* filibuster.
I agree the debt ceiling is bad. But short of getting rid of it, setting the precedent that a clean increase won’t be filibustered and the majority can pass it on a simple majority would be a good & responsible thing. If they can’t, they have to negotiate.
