Blatant cribbing from Roll Call:
"Roll Call's Paul Kane writes that Sen. Trent Lott, while working with Sens. Santorum and Hatch on whipping the rules change, has also met with Sen. Nelson six times recently to work on a compromise to avoid the train wreck. And, poor thing, sounds like he's thrown up his hands because Sen. Reid's attitude has just plain left Republicans with no other choice.
"Lott has a one-page, three-paragraph draft of his proposed compromise he carries in his coat pocket."
"The basic framework calls for an up-or-down vote on all judicial nominees, which meets the current GOP demand. In exchange, Republicans would admit their role in denying a vote to 60 Clinton administration nominees by delay tactics in the Judiciary Committee — setting up a certain time frame in which the panel must consider each nominee."
Seems it was Lott who first publicized the term "nuclear option." At least they aren't saying nuke-u-ler.
We seem to be getting close to who'll blink first here. And it worries me. While the war over judicial nominees is extra-critical, the immediate battle is over Senate rules which is completely inside baseball.
It's a catch-22: a slowdown by Senate Dems may be the only way to keep radical conservatives off the bench, but will the GOP noise machine make Democrats look as bad as Newt Gingrich looked in the `95 government shutdown? That, as you may recall, was the beginning of the end for the "Revolution of `94." Their reach exceeded their grasp. And they were playing offense at the time; we're on defense and in an even weaker position.
Making things worse, the mainstream media, hobbled by "objectivity," won't be able to point out that it's the Republicans that have shattered the traditions of collegiality and bipartisanship.
But the only other answer may be admitting defeat for now, retreating strategically, carefully choosing battles and duking it out at the ballot box. Meantime, these nasty judges settle in for life.
I have no answers for Harry Reid and the troops, yet I hope they see the potential pitfalls.
Politics
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