The System Works! The Senate Fixes Itself.

[Tev]

I still refuse to call it a "Nuclear Option" because that's a dumb way to describe doing your job.

WASHINGTON -- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) pulled the trigger Thursday, deploying a parliamentary procedure dubbed the "nuclear option" to change Senate rules to pass most executive and judicial nominees by a simple majority vote.

The Senate voted 52 to 48 for the move, with just three Democrats declining to go along with the rarely used maneuver.

From now until the Senate passes a new rule, executive branch nominees and judges nominated for all courts except the Supreme Court will be able to pass off the floor and take their seats on the bench with the approval of a simple majority of senators. They will no longer have to jump the traditional hurdle of 60 votes, which has increasingly proven a barrier to confirmation during the Obama administration.

....
McConnell compared the alleged duplicity to another Democratic piece of rhetoric. "If you like the rules of the Senate, you can keep them," he quipped, as the GOP side laughed heartily, which encouraged a pleased McConnell to turn directly to his colleagues and repeat the joke.

He then turned to the Democratic side and said he understood why inexperienced young members who'd never been in the minority might want to change the rules. "The rest of you guys in the conference should know better," he said.
...
"Stop trying to jam us," McConnell said, warning that it would come back to haunt them. "You may regret it a lot sooner than you think."
...
"It's raw power that they're exercising, that, like I say, is a very dangerous thing for them to do," Hatch said. "They're going to rue the day they do it."
...
"I feel great," Merkley said. "Since I came here in 2009, I've been absolutely appalled by the dysfunction of this body.

It's about time.

[phil_]

I agree with "Nuclear Option" being an awful choice of words, because when I heard it today on the radio I had a split second of "Oh god we've nuked someone." Not a good feeling. That said,

Originally Posted by Tev

"You may regret it a lot sooner than you think." ... "They're going to rue the day they do it."

"I'll get you next time, Gadget! Next time!"

[tacticslion]

"rue the day"? Really? I mean, really?

NO one talks like that. NO ONE. It... it really has to be tongue-in-cheek or something. That's an absolute ridiculous turn of phrase.

[Karrrrrrrrrrrresche]

I like how they're vaguely threatening to do something or other once they're back in the majority. They can't be too specific because there's literally nothing bad they weren't already planning to do if they won.

[Gregness]

Originally Posted by tacticslion

"rue the day"? Really? I mean, really?

NO one talks like that. NO ONE. It... it really has to be tongue-in-cheek or something. That's an absolute ridiculous turn of phrase.

I dunno man, I used the phrase 'you fool' in an arcade once. Entirely seriously and complete with hammy delivery and I only realized it when someone else pointed it out to me after the fact.

[Aerozord]

I am hoping this has some restrictions. Filibuster does grind congress to a halt but with a two party system majority has unilateral control

[phil_]

Originally Posted by Aerozord

I am hoping this has some restrictions. Filibuster does grind congress to a halt but with a two party system majority has unilateral control

Restrictions: This is just for confirming presidential appointments, not for law making or anything that isn't just a perfunctory vote on something that has already been decided. Also it doesn't apply to confirming Supreme Court justices, because that's actually a thing that should be seriously considered by both parties no matter what animal pin the current President favors.

So, yeah, this isn't anything big as far as future legislation goes (because it has nothing to do with legislation, just filling the cabinet). I'm not sure how it can be abused, really, since the President is the guy who'd would catch hell for appointing someone who shouldn't be in his cabinet, not the Senators who failed to vote against that confirmation. Although, cutting off one's nose to spite one's face is becoming a standard GOP tactic, so maybe they will use a simple majority to make a ill-behaved boston terrier Secretary of State when their guy is in the White House next. That wouldn't be the end of the world, though.

[Aerozord]

Ah, thats not too bad. Sure they will eventually find a way to abuse it though.

[Magus]

Originally Posted by phil_

Although, cutting off one's nose to spite one's face is becoming a standard GOP tactic, so maybe they will use a simple majority to make a ill-behaved boston terrier Secretary of State when their guy is in the White House next. That wouldn't be the end of the world, though.

To be honest, Maxie is way more charismatic than John Kerry.

[phil_]

I would counter that Maxie doesn't speak Persian, but Kerry probably doesn't either.