Republicans Threaten Nuclear Option Against Democrats Over Judicial Nominees

[With apologies folks, this is very inside Washington stuff]

Today, after almost two years of partisan bickering, the fractious members of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee finally recommended the confirmation of President Bush’s judicial nominee – Judge Janice Brown – to the US Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit.

But a political confrontation of historic proportions looms when her nomination reaches the Senate floor for debate and final vote (possibly as early as next Monday). Ever since Bush announced Judge Brown’s nomination in July 2003, Democrats have remained ideologically opposed to her joining the nation’s second highest court. And, they have vowed to use the filibuster (endless debate and procedural motions) to deny Republicans the opportunity to confirm her on a party-line vote.

For their part, the Republicans (with their 55 member majority) have threatened what is being described as a “nuclear option”: Changing Senate rules (which requires only 50 votes) so that cloture (limit) on debate would require only 50 votes as opposed to the 60 that are required under existing rules.

If Republicans succeed, they can end the filibuster and confirm Judge Brown (and other Bush judicial nominees) with a majority of 50 votes. But Democrats counter that if Republicans deploy this option, they will use other parliamentary procedures to bring all pending legislation in the Senate to a screeching halt and, effectively, close down the federal government.

Why all the bellicose rhetoric and political threats? Well, each side invokes Constitutional duties and principled concerns about protecting the American way of life. Democrats, in particular, proffer that if the Senate confirms all of Bush’s judicial nominees, those judges would legislate new laws from the Bench that could turn America into a Taliban state like the one Bush just got rid of in Afghanistan….

But a pox on both their Parties because Democrats are only trying to do to Bush’s judicial nominees what Republicans did to President Clinton’s nominees not so long ago. So after all the political posturing, Republicans will confirm Bush’s nominees and Democrats will simply lick their wounds whilst waiting their turn to run rough shod over Republicans again under the patronage of the next Democratic President. Indeed, there seems no end to this cycle of partisan attack and retaliation that now constitutes political leadership in Washington.

But click here to read my recent article on why liberal Democrats would rather shut down the US government than allow this impeccably qualified black woman to serve on the US Court of Appeals.

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