"I hope George just does recess appointments"
That won't work, either. In six months, he'll be back to square one...again.
Frist needs to stand firm and tell any jackass, like McCain, to hold his tongue: No capitulating!
The point is, he's supposed to have the "advice and consent" of the Senate for any nominations.
Lets get one thing perfectly clear. The dems are using the filibuster to PREVENT A VOTE. Because THEY KNOW THE NOMINEES ARE QUALIFIED AND WOULD BE CONFIRMED.
So they are refusing to do THEIR CONSTITUTIONAL DUTY, which is to say yea or nay to a nomination.
If Bush was to make recess appointments, the shoe would be on the other foot. When Congress came back in session, the dims would have to PROVIDE SOME SORT OF EVIDENCE THE APPOINTED PERSON WAS INELIGIBLE.
Yeah, the whiners in Congress would scream bloody murder. But they would totally understand why it was done. And it might put any more nominations on the fasttrack for a vote.