Posted on 01/23/2006 12:45:09 PM PST by SirLinksalot
Pressure may drive Dems to filibuster Alito vote
January 22, 2006
BY ROBERT NOVAK SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST
Pressure from liberal activists to oppose confirmation of Judge Samuel Alito for the Supreme Court has been so intense that Democratic senators may be trapped into a filibuster that they do not want to wage.
Despite the consensus that Alito performed well in his confirmation hearings, leaders of liberal organizations opposing him -- Ralph Neas, Nan Aron and Wade Henderson -- demand that Democrats vote against him. Consequently, Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska is the only Democrat at this writing who has announced in Alito's favor.
That means the number of senators voting ''no'' will be well over the 41 needed to prevent cloture. Pressure groups then could ask why no filibuster had been launched. But Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid may not want to risk causing Senate Republican Leader Bill Frist to set a precedent by using the ''nuclear'' option: to end a filibuster by simple majority vote.
ping
If they do, they will be nuked, and they can't afford to let that happen.
They'll just whine and bitch and roll over.
Oh man, is this going to backfire on the Dems.
Well, it's time to either play or fold now for the Dems. If I were them, I'd filibuster and call Frist's hand if I were them. What have they got to lose?
What does it cost to lose the filbuster and go nuke? Republicans have recognized for years the right of a nominee to "up or down" and if they never foresee the need to filibuster a judge, then get rid of this at the first chance presented.
I mean, if Ginsburg gets 96 votes, who from the Conservative perspective could EVER warrant a filibuster?
the best will be when the final vote is 55-59 votes in favor of Alito and no filibuster was called. The kooks will erupt.
Let's bring it on..........time to nuke!
Thats because they are what I call "Achtung! Schnell! Get into zee boxcar liberals." They are not interested in democracy, fairness, or law - their jackbooted fascist orthodoxy is all that matters.
If the DemocRATS abuse the filibuster, they lose it.
If I were running the Senate, it would take me 10 seconds to initiate the nuclear option if the Dems were to filibuster.
C'mon Dems! You can do it! Filibuster and show America what a bunch of losers you are and lose mid-term seats!
do you have any information to show 50 solid R votes for the nuclear option? I haven't seen it. that's not to say those votes aren't there if this thing goes to the mattresses. A republican senator voting for Alito's confirmation is a wholly separate vote from that same senator voting for the nuclear option. Sen Warner for example will vote for Alito, but will his "respect for the senate rules" mean he will vote for the nuclear option? I'm not sure.
I would be afraid if they announced they had the votes to filibuster and that they were going to do it. I have no confidence that the Republicans would stand their ground and defend Alito by revising the rules so that SCOTUS nominees could not be filibustered. Still, it seems like now that there is a real candidate, and a real candidate that most everyone seems to love, they themselves would be playing with fire if they allowed the rats to bork him now.
"Oh man, is this going to backfire on the Dems."
I'm encouraging my Dem Sen to fillibuster. We need a super-majority in 06.
I've always wanted to nuke the democrats so I'm hoping they're stupid enough to filibuster.
Go ahead and Filibuster, lose your secret weapon once and for all and say hello to Justices Brown and Lutting!
Lets hope so !
And lets hope the Reps make them actually STAND UP THERE AND BLATHER ON FOR HOURS !!
This could make really a great C-SPAN2 bankground program. The "real filibuster" has never been used since CSPAN started has it.
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