Posted on 12/30/2012 9:48:49 AM PST by bestintxas
This is not good news for Republicans - or for future minority parties in the US Senate.
The Hill:
Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.), a leading proponent of filibuster reform, said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) has the 51 votes he needs to change Senate rules with the "nuclear option."
The maneuver would be controversial, however, and could heighten partisan tensions at the start of the 113th Congress in January. Republicans say using 51 votes to change Senate procedures - and to prevent the minority party in the Senate from blocking a majority-vote - amounts to breaking the rules to change them.
"The crucial thing for all of you to know is Harry Reid's got 51 votes to do the Constitutional option at the beginning of the Congress," Udall said. "My sense is if he can't get agreement on the other side, then he's going to go forward."
Changing rules with a simple majority vote is considered so controversial it is sometimes called the nuclear option. Democrats backing the maneuver have described it as the "Constitutional option."
A bipartisan group of senators including Senate Rules Committee Chairman Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the ranking Republican member of the Rules panel, are meanwhile working on a bipartisan compromise to change filibuster rules under regular order, which requires 67 votes.
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
....when (in the past 4 years) have the Senate Republicans ever used the filibuster to stop anything important?
IIRC, “They wouldn’t dare.”
This is posturing for the Democratic base, IMO.
This is because GOP in Senate and House have means to refuse all action on any bill (in GOP controlled House) or any nomination (Senators can put anonymous hold on any appointment) until filibuster is restored.
There is no opposition party. There is only a clueless party.
There is no Constitution. There is only an executive branch.
There are no laws. There are only men.
This will not change any time soon.
“This will not change any time soon.”
Well, 2013 should show us in stark terms, what the country is going to look like for the next generation or more. Sadly, it doesn’t appear at the outset that the Republicans have the fortitude and character to make it a real fight! This is way beyond the “normal ebb and flow” of partisan politics. The RATs see blood in the water and they are going to go for broke. And seemingly, the citizens today don’t see the serious overreach.
When was the last time anything was actually “talked to death”?
I will give the rank and file of the Republican House a bit of credit, I expected them to roll over and give Obama everything he wanted in the fiscal cliff negotiations, considering that the liberal media started the drumbeat the day after the elections saying the election had vindicated Obama and the Republicans dare not oppose him. Not only did they not give him what he wanted, they also shot down Boehners "plan B" which Obama said he would veto anyway. Of course the day is still young and they might very well role over as soon as the media starts running the sob stories about the families effected by the fiscal cliff next month. But still, they held out longer than I expected.
Why aren't we for Reid doing this?
Harry Reid is trying to kill Jimmy Stewart in “Mr Smith Goes to Washington!”
It will be the final nail in the coffin that separates the senate from the house, other than the terms.
Mark
OK GOP, shut down the government, completely. No agreement, no compromise on ANYTHING. They want to play fast and loose with the Constitution, crater them. They want to see “the party of no” - show them what that really means. Here’s a hint people - we don’t need the government. We can take a few weeks, few months off from them. It’d do us good. So shut them down GOP. Now.
The bad news will be evident if one of the Supreme Court Justices dies or retires in the next 2 years. At 51 votes there is effectively a rubber confirmation stamp for whatever nominee Obama wants to place on the court. Ugh.
If the House has a speaker (R) with any testosterone... he would simply tell Harry that if they change their filibuster rules and pass legislation that doesn’t get 61 votes it will NEVER see the light of day in the House... so go ahead, make my day, pass whatever you want...it’s DOA in my chamber !! Checkmate.
As far as I know and have heard, the conservatives are fairly healthy...but would have taste testers and car pre-starters, and stay out of Ft. Marcy Park !!
The GOPe are not clueless and Obama is not stupid, they know exactly what they are doing. Sooner or later Patriots will have to understand that.
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