It’s here…. *Updated* May 19, 2005 ~ 10:04 am
Posted by Julie in : Daily Grind , trackbackGet ready for the fight of all fights, kids. The Senate debate over the Nuclear Option has begun. Oh, sure, right now they’re just talking about nominees, but we are going to head down the garden path by the beginning of next week.
Bill Frist would have us believe that the Democrats are doing something new and unheard of by filibustering on Bush’s more radical judicial nominees. But then, Dr. Frist would also have us forget that he himself led a filibuster on one of Bill Clinton’s nominees. And that Senate Republicans stalled as many as 70 Clinton nominations with “procedural tactics”. But now that the shoe is on the other foot, and they’re the majority, they want to get rid of the filibuster and push through Bush’s nominees. “Hello, pot, this is the kettle. You’re black.”
Chuck Schumer, a New York Senator I am proud to call my own, took Frist to task on this on Wednesday. He questioned Frist’s use of the filibuster in 2000. What did Frist say? He claimed there was a distinction: “It’s the partisan-leadership-led use of cloture votes to kill, to defeat, to assassinate these nominees, and that’s the difference.” Yeah, riiiight. Because you weren’t doing anything like that when Clinton was in the White House, were ya, Bill?
I’m worried, along with many other people, that if Frist and his cronies manage to kill the filibuster, they won’t stop with judicial nominees. With the controlling votes in a Senate, they would be able to push through Dubya’s Social Security plan - the one that’s going to screw my and future generations right up the ass. Minimum wage? Well, for people who make millions, even billions a year, minimum wage isn’t exactly a top priority. Roe v. Wade? The path would be clear to sweep that one away, too. To use a phrase rapidly becoming cliche, if you’re not outraged, you haven’t been paying attention. Call your Senators, folks. Let them know how you feel about the Nuclear Option. Click here to find out their contact info. Because if you don’t act now, by next week, 214 years of Senate history could be down the tubes.
**Info for this post came from too many sources to count, including this NY Times article.
***UPDATE***
MoveOnPAC.org has put together the best flyer on this issue, ever. I’ll give you a little hint: it’s called Revenge of the Frist. Go check it out. And click on the Save the Republic link to see their new Star Wars- inspired commercial.
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