Harry Reid Looks to Change Senate Rules to Ram Through Obama Nominees

A consortium of liberal groups and labor unions are pressuring Senate Majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) to change Senate rules on filibustering beyond the nuclear option. They argue the additional changes will speed up the confirmation of President Obama's judicial nominees.

Moreover, the unions and progressive organizations know that they have to strike while the iron is hot. If Reid and the Democrats fail to retain their control of the Senate in November, Obama will get very few of his judicial nominees confirmed next year.

The rule changes aim to cut the Republicans out of the deliberative process and may undermine the checks and balances that is the foundation of American governance.

But some say it’s perfectly acceptable to sacrifice a potential GOP Senate majority in exchange for the momentary gratification of watching the likes of Mitch McConnell go down in flames in a primary. Much as I don’t like McConnell, he’d be far preferable as majority leader to that POS Reid. The dems are shredding the Constitution before our very eyes.

No, it is not perfectly acceptable, it is absolutely necessary. I used to feel as you do, but that was several knives in the back ago.

A GOP majority with Snivelin’ Mitch is NOT preferable to Reid - Mitch would still follow Harry’s orders, but take the blame...and by association the conservatives are blamed.

So Harry Reid does this ham fisted force-down of nominees by changing rules. Let's say (R)'s take back the Senate and just before (R)'s take control in Jan '15 Reid and cronies reverse the rules back to the way they were before November, 2013.

Well that can be fine for the (R)'s, and here's why and how.

Here's both the remedy and shot over the bow to anyone who ever tries to do this again:

House and Senate defund the office of every Obama appointee installed since November, 2013 when this usurpation first occurred. The defunded appointee's office effectively dies on the vine.

The nominee's office will be ordered vacated immediately and that space made available only to office paperclip storage.

The nominee will be given just enough time to turn in his building entry badge since his place on the mail server will no linger be funded. He will not be accorded an opportunity to clear his desk out, since the House Sergeant-at-Arms may need to impound it for evidence.

Obama is free to re-nominate the expelled person of course (if they haven't been locked up something already), but they would be subject to the 60-vote cloture rule as before, therefore affirming the prior sense of decorum that reigned in the Senate for ~230 years prior.

We show that we don't play dirty pool like the (D)'s but we do show we have understanding of the Constitutional meaning of the power of the purse. (R)'s re-establish the rules of order and re-affirm precedent, bringing back institutional comity at least as it existed for 230 years.

FReegards!

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