True evil of nuclear option

I think that the proposal to abolish filibusters on judicial appointments is more evil than it appears.

Look carefully at what was proposed: to alter the parliamentary rules of the Senate by the will of a simple majority and the word of the "presiding officer".  If this is OK, than no rule is safe.  If no rule is safe, there are no rules.

Suppose that a member of the opposition wants a bill to be read before the vote.  Overruled.

Suppose that a member of the opposition wants the content of a bill to be disclosed before the vote.  Overruled.

Suppose that the majority will convene suddently without the opposition present.  Hey, now they have 2/3 majority and they can amend the Constitution, impeach all inconvenient judges, sky is the limit!

Rules are what prevents the dictatorship of the temporary majority.  Judicial appointments are but a small part of the larger picture.

•  Tyranny of the minority

  You give them undue credit when you refer to the Republican Senators as a "temporary majority." Several diarists have pointed out that the 45 Democrats in the Senate, representing states including California, New York, and Illinois, represent more people than the 55 Republicans.

  One reason the filibuster is an important component of our system, is that it makes the undemocratic Senate more tolerable. Get rid of it, and the Senate  itself must go.

  by Elwood Dowd on Sat Apr 09, 2005 at 12:29:42 PM PDT

•  Senate

  First of all, there are enough Republicans that would be against this (including McCain) who would join with all 45 Democrats (counting Jeffords as a Dem, which I do) and they wouldn't have the support to do this.  All of this would just play into the idea that the Republicans are overreaching their power and could really hurt them in 2006.  

  Second, I agree that the Senate is undemocratic (small d) by its nature.  The Republicans argue that the filibuster is the tyranny of the minority, yet Democratic Senators represent far more people than Republican Senators.  Senators from some of the largest states (New York, Illinois, California) are Democrats.  

  by maxgray7 on Sat Apr 09, 2005 at 04:18:57 PM PDT