LIVE THREAD: SENATE FILIBUSTER!! Call Capitol Swtchbrd 1-800-648-3516 to Protest Dem Obstructionism

www.freerepublic.com | November 12, 2003

[Howlin]

I despise that man.

[Guillermo]

I doubt that's it, as the Dems have broken 214 years of precedent with their filibuster.

[hoosiermama]

Maybe it was a manipulation so the rats would stay in line and look bad. They want to be able to use the last vote against them in the election.

Bayh is an excellant example. The dem's in this area are "DEEPLY CONCERNED" about his alliance with the VLW. This confirms it yet again and will be used against him.

[nuffsenuff]

I think we may be talking about different things...

What do you consider "going nuclear"? Recess appointments?

[DDDDaytonNot]

I think that would be....Brittany Spears. I hear she thinks Masterdebating is "sacred"

[Howlin]

I think it might be telling that at least 2 of our guys who have hit this hard are relatively new

I believe you are right. Did you see Lindsey Graham in a press conference saying that Hatch and Leahy have some "bad blood" from "way back" and that they should "take it somewhere else and settle it?"

[rs79bm]

You heard it here first:

The senate Democrats have now officially called Conservatives Un-American, Lemons, and out of the Main-Stream. Now how does that make you feel? According to Democrats, E-Pluribus Unum does not mean out of many one, but rather who we pre-determine to be right or wrong. Now if that is not rooting against your Country what is it???

[hoosiermama]

RECESS APPOINTMENT DO NOT WORK! The appointee does not get paid and their term is up at the end of the session. Not a good idea.

[StriperSniper]

Was a great link to a nuke on an island seen from far away from the air.

Is that the one that comes up first in the upper left on a Google image search on 'nuclear'?
I was trying to get that one last night. :(

[PISANO]

Figure the 2 from Maine, Chafee and Specter. Don't know who the other 8 are....maybe McCain is one. Heck, Lott might even be one.

Santorum wouldn't say who they were but told Sean Hannity that you would be surprised. Sean said he was going to use his source to get the names of those 12. I really have mixed feelings about those 12. On one hand I want them to beat this thing on the other I understand that THEY want to be able to STOP LIBERAL JUDGES in the future.

When it comes right down to it I DO NOT trust the GOP to do something that most think is UNCONSTITUTIONAL. In addition, the Gimmies, if they are in MAJORITY will all ban together and use the nuclear option to thwart us (minority) if we try to filabuster in the future. So it is LOSE ....LOSE.... IMHO. Sad

[Qwinn]

The thing is, anyone half-informed about the history of filibusters will -know- that the Dems on all the various talk shows who bring up how Republicans "did the same thing" under Clinton are lying through their teeth. They're not even remotely the same thing. They'll remember that.

I -STILL- think the following history needs a lot more exposure:

---

"From the Committee for Justice, debunking some of the Dems claims:

WASHINGTON, DC – As the Senate undertook its historic all-hours debate of the minority’s unprecedented use of the filibuster to deny the President’s nominees final votes, the Committee for Justice responded to some senators initial arguments, made at a pre-debate press conference.
CLAIM:

Sen. Tom Daschle (D-SD):

“The use of the filibuster is not unprecedented; there have been numerous votes on cloture on judges in recent years.”

RESPONSE:

Define filibuster, Senator. A filibuster occurs when attempts to limit debate (either by unanimous consent or cloture motion) fails, not when they succeed. Holding a cloture vote is hardly the same as the permanent blockage of a nominee. Under the proper definition, prior to the 108th Congress, there were four filibusters against judicial nominations, including one Clinton nomination.

The Senate took 15 cloture votes on 14 different nominations (four of them Clinton nominations).

Eleven of those cloture votes passed, and those nominations were confirmed. Three of these were on Clinton nominations. These, by definition, were not filibusters. Four cloture votes failed. These were filibusters.

However, three of these were temporary filibusters, and the nominations were later confirmed.

***One of them was on a Clinton nomination, Brian T. Stewart nominated to the U.S. District Court. He was filibustered by Democrats, not Republicans. The 55-44 vote on cloture on 9/21/99 was to leverage confirmation of more Clinton nominees, which Republicans agreed to and Stewart was confirmed 93-5 on 10/5/99.

***The cloture vote on J. Harvie Wilkinson’s nomination to the 4th Circuit on 7/31/84 failed, but a second cloture on 8/9/84 passed and he was soon confirmed.

***The cloture vote on William Rehnquist’s nomination to be Associate Justice on 12/10/71 failed, but he was confirmed the same day without having to take a second cloture vote.

***The cloture vote on Abe Fortas’s nomination to be Chief Justice on 10/1/68 failed on a vote of 45-43. This means he did not have support of a majority in the Senate, and the 43 votes for the filibuster included 24 Republicans and 19 Democrats. The vote of cloture functioned as a test vote on his nomination, and President Johnson quickly withdrew the nomination. He was not blocked by the minority.

Thus, the filibusters during the 108th Congress are absolutely unprecedented. They are the first permanent (as opposed to temporary) filibusters against nominations with majority (as opposed to minority) Senate support.

Qwinn

[Guillermo]

The "nuclear option" is a rule change, disallowing the filibuster of judicial appointments.

THERE ARE NO RECESS APPOINTMENTS FOR FEDERAL JUDGES.

[Cboldt]

I doubt that's it, as the Dems have broken 214 years of precedent with their filibuster.

I dunno. I can see a conservative Senator objecting to going nuclear. Going nuclear would have quite the institutional ramifications on the Senate. Yes, I know that wha the DEMs are doing is unprecedented, and that sometime fighting fire with fire is appropriate.

Anyway, I tend to believe that some fo the 12 anti-nuclear-option GOP Senators are quite conservative.

[Howlin]

Lincoln Chaffee is such a pussy!

[Mo1]

How long has Santorum been in the Senate? I think it might be telling that at least 2 of our guys who have hit this hard are relatively new (Graham and Coleman).

He is in his 2nd term .. I think he was elected in 94/95

[TheRightGuy]

We need a Lyndon Johnson Everett Dirsksen in the Senate.

[Spunky]

"They are taking cloture votes on the nominees at this time....."

Let me know again exactly what a cloture vote is. There are so many votes I get totally confused.

[Howlin]

Are they going to bring up Frist-Miller after these votes?

[Howlin]

Are they going to bring up Frist-Miller after these votes?

[Carolinamom]

I read a Byron York article in National Review sometime back in which he wrote that it was generally agreed among the other senators that Leahy was the meanest of all the senators.

both definitions, I presume: cruel, petty