Free Republic

Republicans took the first official step Wednesday toward a rules change that would allow the Senate to speed up votes on some of the president’s nominees — setting the stage for what’s likely to become a “nuclear” confrontation. While pleading for bipartisanship, GOP senators made clear they’ll likely act no matter what on a plan to cut the amount of debate time after filibusters to two hours on most presidential nominees, down from the 30 hours currently allowed under the rules. The 10-9 party-line vote made clear that bipartisanship is unlikely, leaving Republicans with only one option if they want...

Senate Republicans are poised to advance a resolution next week to drastically reduce the amount of time it takes to confirm hundreds of President Trump's nominees as Republicans mull going "nuclear" to muscle through the change. Under the resolution introduced by Sens. James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), the chairman of the Rules Committee, most nominees would only be subjected to up to two hours of debate after they clear an initial hurdle. Currently, nominees are subjected to up to 30 hours of additional debate after proving they have the simple majority needed to defeat a filibuster and be...

Senate Republicans are planning to advance a proposal that would dramatically reduce the amount of time it takes to advance hundreds of Trump nominees by the end of March. Sen. Roy Blunt (Mo.), a member of GOP leadership, said the Rules Committee, which he oversees, would take up the proposal. “I’m looking at the first quarter of the year,” Blunt said, asked about a timeline for taking up the change. The timeline, which was first reported by Politico, is the latest sign that Republicans are feeling bullish about changing the rules for President Trump’s nominees after discussing the idea at...