Changing the rules in the 7th inning
Does all this talk of eradicating the filibuster have you scratching your chin? I admit to only having a partial understanding of just what it is we're talking about, and just what it means if the Republicans in the Senate get their way and kiss the filibuster buh-bye. (Note to self: Would I like to see the W have total clearance to set the dominoes in action to place right-wing, religious zealot judges in power across the nation's courts? Uh, No.)
Read up. This is your crash course.
It's typical of W that he's kicking and screaming as a result of his inability to get his way in EVERY single case of appointing judges. The Dems have only blocked (by filibuster) 7 of his 212 nominees. That's a 97 percent approval rate. By comparison, Clinton enjoyed just an 84 percent approval rate. Reagan was at 93 percent, and W's dad was at 79 percent. But, the issue goes deeper than this...it is politics, after all.
As much as Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist likes to call what the Dems are attempting to do through their filibustering "unprecedented" (which it's not), if the Pubs successfully change the rules in the middle of the game, then they will be doing something unprecendented themselves. And the hero for the Pubs will be none other than Bill Frist, who wants to be the Republican nominee for Prez in '08. Wouldn't it be spectacular to hit a big home run for your party AND the religious right in order to draw a top-dollar contract come free agency?
Read up. This is your crash course.
It's typical of W that he's kicking and screaming as a result of his inability to get his way in EVERY single case of appointing judges. The Dems have only blocked (by filibuster) 7 of his 212 nominees. That's a 97 percent approval rate. By comparison, Clinton enjoyed just an 84 percent approval rate. Reagan was at 93 percent, and W's dad was at 79 percent. But, the issue goes deeper than this...it is politics, after all.
As much as Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist likes to call what the Dems are attempting to do through their filibustering "unprecedented" (which it's not), if the Pubs successfully change the rules in the middle of the game, then they will be doing something unprecendented themselves. And the hero for the Pubs will be none other than Bill Frist, who wants to be the Republican nominee for Prez in '08. Wouldn't it be spectacular to hit a big home run for your party AND the religious right in order to draw a top-dollar contract come free agency?
posted by thenoiseboy @ 9:38 AM
1 Comments:
At 4:25 PM,
Bedheaded said…
I say go ahead and remove the filibuster. Then when another party has the majority in four years or so, that party can move to expand the supreme court to 23 seats, ban gasoline and fossil fuel usage in the United States, ban the death penalty, and declare unconstitutional any passing affiliation of religion and politics--and they can do it with a 51 to 50 vote. They think they can change the rules and win? Well it's never worked before, so let 'em. What was that old saw about learning history or being doomed? I can't remember, because I'm too drunk on the blood of aborted fetuses.
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