Posted on 11/21/2013 9:52:06 AM PST by SoFloFreeper
Edited on 11/21/2013 9:53:53 AM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]
A bitterly divided Senate voted Thursday to ease the confirmation process for most presidential nominees, a momentous and potentially risky step that limits the ability of Republicans to block President Barack Obama's choices for executive-branch and most judicial posts.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) engineered the rules change, over Republican objections, with a complicated parliamentary maneuver that ended up placing new curbs on the use of the filibuster—a move so controversial that it is often called the "nuclear option."
"The American people believe Congress is broken. The American people believe the Senate is broken…It's time to change the Senate before this institution becomes obsolete," Mr. Reid said.
The key vote was 52-48, with all but three Democrats voting for the change and all Republicans opposed. Democratic Sens. Carl Levin of Michigan, Mark Pryor of Arkansas and Joe Manchin of West Virginia broke from their party and voted against changing the rules.
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I'm sure all those Senate Dems up for election this year will love running on 0bamacare.
My eyes were opened in 2008. I’ve constantly maintained that nothing will be fixed at the ballot box ever again. Too many conservatives are still thinking it can be fixed, sadly this is not the case.
And that is why Obama has been moving so aggressively to remake the military and replace so many high ranking officers. All successful would be tyrants have to make sure that the army will back them against their own citizenry.
Three RATs voted with the Republican's against the rule change. If all of the Republicans and two of the three dissenting RATs had boycotted todays proceedings, then the senate would have lacked the quorum needed to make the rule change.
Bears repeating!!
Exactly! They will probably put back the old rules sometime around the holidays 2014 (if they lose the majority in november). John McCain will then make sure it stays that way.
I read in a thread that these new rules sunset at the end of this Congress. A majority GOP would have to vote to enact something similar. Not going to happen with liberal Republicans like Princess Murkowski stabbing us in the back.
Only if they are in control of the Senate.
the republican leaders WANTED THIS or it would have been stopped.
This is to pass illegal alien AMNESTY
This is to attack the conservatives
This is to protect the senate country club.
Spot on! One of Bush's mistakes was his failure to clean all the Clintonistas out of his administration when he took office. We are still paying for this failure.
One thing I admire about democrats is when in the majority or the minority they know how to use the power they have. Reid never tells his base what they can’t do & wait til they have a majority.
AGREE COMPLETELY!!! Midge McConnell and the other spineless RINO *leaders* did NOTHING to stop this. Patsy’s, All!!
What they have done is not un-constitutional, it is howerver trampling on an order and way of doing things that has been accepted by both sides for a long long time.
I just remember when the shoe was on the other foot and the Dems were holding up George W. Bush's nominees left and right and purely on ideological and political grounds, and when the GOP controlled Senate considered this same "nuclear" option, how they moaned, whined, complained and and cried out. Including to the person almost every one of these two-faced, coniving, lieing scoundrels who today are saying that this is somehow okay now that they are doing it.
Well, let it come back to haunt them for years.
"Führerprinzip" redux.
A majority in the Senate can change Senate rules at any time (U.S. Constitution, Article I, section 5, clause 2). No Senate can bind a future Senate. In other words, it’s reversable.
Bingo........ YOU are the winner. Val Jarrett IS running this country, including negotiating with Iran. How about that “apology” to Afghan? Rules of Engagement killing our soldiers, Seal Team 6 dead, Benghazi massacre stand down, Muslims all over the White Hut and in government. Brennan IS a converted Muslim. I get sick to think of all the damage.
GOP in DC are just ignoring these horrors. If you and I know it, THEY sure know what's going on before WE do. When I call the RNC, they patronize me, saying sure we agree, I'll pass it on. Keep the grass roots active, keep the faith and keep fighting this.
I suppose if they go to committee they can be stopped, but not likely...Demon Rats generally hold majorities on the committees, especially big ones like Judiciary.
Also, what the hell is there to keep Herr Reid from obeying his Fuhrer and just bringing all 90 judicial nominees straight to the well of the Senate for a unanimous vote? Nothing. Nothing at all.
The Senate essentially became a rubber stamp today for Dear Reader.
Thankfully you know what time it is and what is taking place.
Too many are riddled with Normalcy Bias to allow themselves the ability to know what is about to happen to us.
Like the Jews in Europe who refused to believe what the Nazis themselves said they were going to do.
Bull crap. They could not stop it. I know people like to think that, but there is a difference between the Demonrat establishment and the Republican.
Both have their flaws, but between the two, the fascism and tyranny are unequivocally on the Demon Rat side.
Like people griping about Bush and “spending”...yeah, Bush’s average deficits were something about $200B a year, I think...Obama’s are FIVE TIMES WORSE...and I still hear people on this conservative web site saying “Bush was nearly as bad” or stuff like that.
Horse crap.
I hate trying to sound like I agree 100% with the GOP on everything...I do not, and I have problems with them...but the GOP does NOT support this move by Reid. Not at all. And most Americans shouldn’t, either.
There IS a difference between the two parties, and you saw it today in the Senate.
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