Re:U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has died
by DrScump on Sunday February 14, 2016 @06:55AM
(#11097940)
<the Republican-devised "nuclear option" being used by the Democrats>
How's that again?
Re:U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has died
by geofft on Sunday February 14, 2016 @12:49PM
(#11099148)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_option
The "nuclear option" was named by Trent Lott (R-Miss.) in 2003 and first seriously threatened by majority leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) in 2005. It got actually invoked by the Democrats in 2013, in the reverse situation: the Democrats had a majority but not a supermajority of the Senate, and a Democratic president.
https://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/698634625246195712
The Senate had been (apparently) filibustering presidential appointments quite a bit more of late, both Democrats against Bush and Republicans against Obama, concluding in the Republican-devised "nuclear option" being used by the Democrats in 2013. Nominations by the president now only require a simple majority, not a supermajority, with the specific exception of Supreme Court nominees.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filibuster_in_the_United_State...
It would not be surprising at all to see the same sort of filibustering that was previously applied to both Obama and Bush's nominations be applied to whomever Obama nominates to the Supreme Court.