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Offline mystery-ak

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Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« on: November 21, 2013, 03:44:29 pm »
http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=478277FC-6E54-46C0-B2C1-7E59A3AF96B1

 Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
By: Burgess Everett
November 21, 2013 09:32 AM EST

Senate Republicans’ ability to filibuster President Barack Obama’s nominees could soon be history.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid may move toward a historic change in the Senate rules to eliminate the filibuster on most nominations as soon as Thursday, according to senior Democratic aides.

Reid is strongly considering calling up one in a group of blocked nominees to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals for another round of votes, furious that Republicans have thwarted the nominations of Robert Wilkins, Nina Pillard and Patricia Millette. If a second go-round fails on that judicial pick, Reid would likely unilaterally move to change the rules of the Senate by a majority vote — the “nuclear option,” Senate sources said.

Privately, Senate Democratic leaders insist they prefer confirmation of Obama’s nominees rather than a rules change. And lawmakers have been at this point before.


The rules change being discussed among top Democrats would eliminate filibusters on all executive nominees as well as all judicial nominees, except those to the Supreme Court. Such a rules change would pave the path toward smoother confirmation for two more key Obama nominees: Janet Yellen to lead the Federal Reserve and Jeh Johnson to helm the Department of Homeland Security.

Republicans are publicly warning that the change would simply be a path to eliminating the filibuster on everything, even on legislation — which would mean when the GOP takes the majority, Democrats will regret pushing the nuke button.

“You always have to take it seriously. I just think it would be incredibly short-sighted,” said Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, the Republican whip. “It just seems to be something they keep coming back to when [Democrats] don’t get their way.”



A change to Senate’s age-old rules still could be headed off by a last-minute deal with Republicans, but a leadership source was bearish on such a breakthrough. The Senate came to the brink of a more narrow rules change that would have affected only executive nominees this summer but longtime lawmakers like Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) were able to agree to help move a series of stalled nominations and avoid diluting the minority’s power.

This time around there hasn’t been as strong an effort to head off the rules change. McCain made an offer on Wednesday that Democrats found insufficient because it didn’t include all three judges; Reid says he won’t settle for less than filling out the 11-seat court’s three vacancies.

But not all Democrats are wedded to a rules change, and some are proactively working to figure out if the “nuclear option” can be avoided. One of those, Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), helped avoid the “nuclear option” in 2005 when Republicans were trying to change the rules to circumvent Democratic filibusters of George W. Bush’s judicial nominees.


“Democrats and Republicans are talking, that’s always good. I’m one of those talking, no breaking news, just talking to see where people are on things,” Pryor said in an interview Wednesday.

Several other centrist Democrats, like Sens. Max Baucus of Montana and Joe Manchin of West Virginia, also say publicly they are undecided. But Manchin blasted Republicans’ reasoning for blocking the judges under the argument that the court isn’t busy enough and that President Barack Obama is trying to “pack” the powerful D.C. Circuit.

“You’re saying just because they’re being presented from a Democrat president? That’s not a good enough reason,” Manchin said.

In addition to Wilkins, Pillard and Millette, Republicans also blocked the elevation of Rep. Mel Watt (D-N.C.) to head the Federal Housing Finance Agency and a fourth D.C. Circuit nominee in March, Caitlin Halligan. A fifth nominee, Sri Srinivasan, was confirmed to the court unanimously in May.
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #1 on: November 21, 2013, 03:44:57 pm »
Reid is on the floor now. looks like he's gonna do it
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #2 on: November 21, 2013, 03:45:35 pm »
Byron York ‏@ByronYork 1m

 Can't wait until the GOP's turn to strip minority rights…..there are no rules anymore, total war.
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #3 on: November 21, 2013, 03:46:58 pm »
Carrie Dann ‏@CarrieNBCNews 39s

Reid says GOP in Senate has "turned 'advise and consent' into 'deny and obstruct.'"




Amanda Carpenter ‏@amandacarpenter 1m

Given the horrendous poll number Democrats are suffering for Obamacare, Reid is going to regret this. Very quickly. Bet on it.
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #4 on: November 21, 2013, 03:49:27 pm »
David Freddoso ‏@freddoso 1m

Rs shouldn't complain about this change. Embrace it, start talking about how you'll use it to repeal Obamacare.
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #5 on: November 21, 2013, 03:56:26 pm »
JohnCornyn ‏@JohnCornyn 38s

Senate majority leader Harry Reid's temper tantrum unfolding now on Senate floor




Jonah Goldberg ‏@JonahNRO 7m

Reid nuking senate to draw eyes from crashing ObamaCare. It's sorta like torching your house to distract burglar.




Manu Raju ‏@mkraju 2m

McConnell now accusing Senate Ds of changing the subject away from Obamacare by moving on nuclear option



Stew ‏@StewSays 2m

Sen. McConnell: So yeah, I’d probably be running for the exits too if I had supported this law. #Obamacare #NuclearOption
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #6 on: November 21, 2013, 03:58:18 pm »
John Hayward ‏@Doc_0 49m

This is not a good time for the party that dumped ObamaCare on America to be talking about "nuclear options" in the Senate.



Molly Ball ‏@mollyesque 1m

McConnell says Dems are "cooking up a fake fight over judges" to distract from Obamacare.
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #7 on: November 21, 2013, 04:07:01 pm »
J Rollins ‏@crimsonblessed 1m

@amandacarpenter  Demo to use hyper-speed tactics to usher in their socialist programs & appointees before the next election.
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #8 on: November 21, 2013, 04:08:04 pm »
Stew ‏@StewSays 2m

before current Democrat gambit, Senate confirmed 215 judicial nominees and rejected a grand total of 2---a confirmation rate of 99%.
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #9 on: November 21, 2013, 04:09:18 pm »
Chad Pergram ‏@ChadPergram 1m

McConnell says Dems could regret nuclear option "a lot sooner than you think."





Melissa Clouthier ‏@MelissaTweets 1m

RT @freddoso: The precedent here is not the filibuster. It's that you can change senate rules w 51 votes.
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #10 on: November 21, 2013, 04:10:43 pm »
The Dems are worried they will lose the Senate in 14 thereby they will have to push through all their socialist ideas asap
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #11 on: November 21, 2013, 05:16:27 pm »
In 2005 Reid was vehemently against what he is now proposing.  Of course then the republicans controlled the senate.

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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #12 on: November 21, 2013, 05:19:46 pm »
Voting on it now...
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #13 on: November 21, 2013, 05:20:43 pm »
Guy Benson ‏@guypbenson 40s

Senate Democrats currently voting to do something they called "un-American" and a "Constitutional crisis" a few years ago.
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #14 on: November 21, 2013, 05:23:50 pm »
McConnell: Reid's Filibuster Threat Doesn't Distract People From ObamaCare - It Reminds Them Of It (Video)

McConnell: Reid's Filibuster Threat Doesn't Distract People From ObamaCare - It Reminds Them Of It (Video)
by Debra Heine 21 Nov 2013, 9:18 AM PDT View Discussion
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In response to Harry Reid Threatens to Go Nuclear - In 2005 He Felt Differently (Video):

US Senate Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell took to the Senate floor, this morning to blast Democrats for attempting to change the subject from the devastating consequences of Obamacare to changing the Senate rules regarding filibusters.

He reminded the chamber how the Obama administration and Democrats were willing to do and say anything in order to force ObamaCare on the public.

"The president and his Democratic allies were so determined to force their vision of healthcare on the public, they assured them up and down that they wouldn't lose the plans they had, that they'd save money instead of losing it, and that they'd be able to use the doctors and hospitals they were already losing. But of course, we know, that rhetoric doesn't match reality," McConnell said.

After making note of the unmitigated disaster ObamaCare has become, he taunted "I'd be running for the exits, too, if I'd supported this law. I'd be looking to change the subject!"

He continued, "it doesn't distract people from ObamaCare - it reminds them of ObamaCare. It reminds them of all the broken promises, it reminds them of the power grabs, it reminds them of the way Democrats set up one set of rules for themselves, and another, for everybody else.

One set of rules for them - and another for everybody else. Actually, this is all basically the same debate, and rather than distract people from ObamaCare, it only reinforces the narrative of a party that is willing to do and say just about anything to get its way."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?list=UUIauYUJw6YVOJ7_6olem62w&v=ovN0BoJsHgk
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #15 on: November 21, 2013, 05:24:40 pm »
Sean Agnew ‏@seanagnew 40s

"@guypbenson: Senate Democrats currently voting to do something they called "un-American" and a "Constitutional crisis" a few years ago."
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #16 on: November 21, 2013, 05:26:26 pm »
Anything to get attention off Obamacare!
"I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo.

"So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us."
- J. R. R. Tolkien

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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #17 on: November 21, 2013, 05:32:47 pm »
John Harwood ‏@JohnJHarwood 2m

Duck under desks! @ryangrim: Boxer votes, followed by Reid, which makes 51. Nuke is detonated.
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #18 on: November 21, 2013, 05:33:45 pm »
Dingy Harry Reid out there threatening to use nuclear option. This is an attempt to distract from Obamacare...-- Rush L
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #19 on: November 21, 2013, 05:36:35 pm »
@jpodhoretz Should the GOP have caved on the DC Circuit fight? Accepting 2 of the 3 Dem nominees would have fractured Reid's caucus
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #20 on: November 21, 2013, 05:37:19 pm »
jimgeraghty ‏@jimgeraghty 2m

So, repealing whatever's left of Obamacare in January 2017 will take 218 GOP House members, 51 GOP senators, and a GOP president.



Mike Memoli ‏@mikememoli 1m

@jimgeraghty no. this is only on nominations. Senate Rs, if in majority, would have to move to extend to legislation
« Last Edit: November 21, 2013, 05:37:58 pm by mystery-ak »
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #21 on: November 21, 2013, 05:54:56 pm »
David Freddoso ‏@freddoso 1m

Rs shouldn't complain about this change. Embrace it, start talking about how you'll use it to repeal Obamacare.

So the simple majority applies to every bill now????

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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #22 on: November 21, 2013, 06:02:08 pm »
So the simple majority applies to every bill now????

No just court nominees...excluding SCOTUS
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #23 on: November 21, 2013, 06:05:02 pm »
WASHINGTON — The Senate went nuclear on Thursday, changing the Senate rules for confirming judicial and executive nominees and significantly curbing the power of the minority party.

Under the new rules, only a simple majority would be needed to clear a procedural hurdle in the approval process for executive nominees and judicial nominees. Currently, 60 votes are required to clear that hurdle, which gives the minority the party the power to filibuster and block nominees of whom they disapprove. For Supreme Court nominees, the 60-vote requirement would remain in effect.

In the past several weeks, Republicans have used that power to block three nominees to the District of Columbia Circuit Court, prompting Reid to call for an end to the “gridlock” and move forward with the rules change.


“The need for change is so very, very obvious,” Reid said on the Senate floor Thursday, as almost every senator sat at his or her desk in recognition of the significance of the moment. “It’s clearly visible. It’s manifest we have to do something to change things.”

Fifty-two senators voted for the rules changes — all Democrats and Independents. Three Democrats joined Republicans in opposing the change: West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, Arkansas Sen. Mark Pryor, and Michigan Sen. Carl Levin, who has openly opposed the rules change.

Twice earlier this year, Democrats had threatened to move on the nuclear option in the face of Republican opposition to nominees, but both times an agreement was reached to avert the move. Republican Sen. John McCain told reporters Thursday that he had been working “night and day” to find an agreement this time, but that he had thus far had “no success.”

Republicans have repeatedly argued, as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell did Thursday morning, that Democrats will rue the day they changed the rules if they lose the majority.

“I realize this sort of wishful thinking might appeal to the uninitiated newcomers in the Democratic conference who served exactly zero days in the minority, but the rest of you guys should know better,” McConnell said in a floor speech Thursday, saying that Democrats would inevitably come to “regret” the rules change, possibly, he said, “a lot sooner than you think.”


Still, Reid said that the gridlock made it necessary for the Senate to “evolve.”

“It’s time to change,” Reid said. “It’s time to change the Senate before this institution becomes obsolete.”



Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2013/11/21/reid-moves-forward-with-change-to-filibuster-rules/#ixzz2lIwjgXIr
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Re: Harry Reid may go 'nuclear' Thursday
« Reply #24 on: November 21, 2013, 06:08:43 pm »
Republican Senators might as well go back to their districts and do like Obama, campaign for the next election.  They will have no voice in the Senate, so why bother. I am royally po'd.