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Monday, May 23, 2005

Nuclear Option: CNN Reports Deal Reached

Posted by Tim Tagaris

From CNN's breaking news alert on the top of it's webstite.

A bipartisan group of senators has reached a deal to avert a showdown over President Bush's judicial nominees, congressional sources tell CNN. Details soon.

UPDATE 1 - 7:37 P.M. (Tim) - Drudge Reports (Take it for what it's worth):

"We've got a deal," Nebraska Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson told reporters. Senators plan to announce details at a news conference shortly...

UPDATE - 2 7:46 P.M. (Bob): From MSNBC:

Under the agreement, Democrats would pledge not to filibuster any of Bush’s future appeals court or Supreme Court nominees except in “extraordinary circumstances.”

For their part, Republicans agreed not to support an attempt to strip Democrats of their right to block votes.

If these are the terms, then Democrats won everything. Democrats have approved 95% of Bush's nominees, only using the filibuster for "extraordinary circumstances" with the most extremist picks. With the GOP tanking in the polls, it looks like they were the first to blink. If this is true, then the Democrats won, Democrats saved the Senate!

UPDATE 3 (Tim) - CSPAN3 is carrying the conference, I just tuned in. You can watch at CSPAN.org.

UPDATE 4 (Bob): The few remaining moderates in the Republican Party have just admitted that Bush and Frist and DeLay are batshit crazy. People who vote for Republicans in 2006 are voting to continue the reign of those who pushed this outrageous abuse of power.

UPDATE 5 (Bob): Kos;

It's not a good day to be Bill Frist. He looks weak, unable to control his own caucus. His winger friends go ballistic. They get some judges, sure, but ultimately, we can filibuster Bush's next Supreme Court nominee unless he picks a moderate.

The Dobson power grab may have failed a day early.

UPDATE 6 (Bob): Reid claims victory: "Checks and Balances have been protected."

UPDATE 7 (Bob): Crooks and Liars:

VICTORY!
No nuclear option. Dobson, Robertson, Frist and the Religious Right have lost.

UPDATE 8 (Bob): While Democrats won, there is talk that we would could have done better if Reid wouldn't have been undermined by the chickenshit DLCers.

UPDATE 9 (Bob): More from Kos:

On top of everything, Frist looks weak. He's failed his crazies. He's finished.

Posted at 07:33 PM in Nuclear Option | Technorati

Comments

This is not a compromise, this is a sad capitulation. I have been following this at Armageddon on the Potomac for over a month.

Now it looks like the Republicans will get their way. Owens, in. Brown, in. Unbelievable.

Posted by: The Heretik at May 23, 2005 07:58 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment

What the fuck does "extraordinary circumstances" mean? What it means is, if we want to filibuster a SCOTUS nominee, the GOP will say "This is not 'extraordinary' at all! The Dems are being obstructionist!"

Sounds like we made a deal to preserve a filibuster we'll never be able to use.

Posted by: DavidNYC at May 23, 2005 08:28 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment