Page 1464 - Threshold News Today

As it relates to filibuster et cetera, we were in a very dramatic time. we had in the first four years of the obama administration, the republicans filibustered about 79 nominees. lets put that in perspective, from george washington to george bush, 58 filibusters, so we were responding to the overuse of a procedure that was really putting things into park and not allowing things to move forward. >> are there any other options for republicans other than changing the rules of the senate? >> not if...

The past saying this isnt who id pick. theyll pursue agreements id disagree with but theyre qualified and theyve chosen a processed fight to block this guy probably because they didnt get merrick garland through but two wrongs dont make a right. >> not just block his advance many to the supreme court, they want to block an up or down vote, thats what the filibuster is, correct? >> theyre using that procedural block which has never been used to stop him. thats why the republicans feel they have t...

Something that you did not necessarily want to do but you are prepared to do because the groundwork for this has been laid years ago? >> yeah, dana. interestingly enough, until senator chuck schumer, now the democratic leader of the senate in effect convinced everybody that filibuster is against executive branch appointments were okay, this is the way we did it. for 230 years, up or down, simple majority votes for supreme court, cabinet, everything, until chuck schumer invented it. so, its a fai...

It has not been working very well. its been a dysfunctional place. the old days have been gone forever, and i think it might be time to change. im a house guy, and so i love to lecture the senate how they should change the rules. thats kind of my deal. the fact is to say that the senate has been working pretty well, i think, is really giving too much credit to the senate. >> oh, go ahead. >> i was just going to say, also, i mean, majority of the nominees, you know, for the supreme court have pas...

To be confirmed. the democratic majority in 2013 created this precedent, standard for ending debate on the executive calendar on presidential nominees the 51 and not 60. >> melissa: but can you tell me, sir, if the shoe were on the other foot, would you be complaining about being steam rolled by the democrats around me? >> they had already done it. they had already signaled the fact that they viewed what they did in 2013 as having gone nuclear, as having already crossed that threshold into the 5...

Filibuster and that means that such a filibuster is highly possible and republicans will be left with one option. to invoke the nuclear option or the constitutional option and extend harry reids 50 vote threshold for the first time ever to a supreme court nominee. joining us now, ted cruz. senator, the real a president -- the real lack of precedents here -- its never happened before in over 200 years. a partisan democratic party that will not allow an up or down vote because they know they will ...

All four of the last supreme court justices have crossed the 60 vote threshold. and why? i would say listen to what senator graham said. when we move to a point where we have more ideological nominees on either side, you create a destruction of the way bipartisanship has worked in the senate. which is exactly why chuck shumer is saying dont change the rule, change the nominee. >> bipartisanship has to extend both ways. i mean, youve heard people like lindsey graham say they werent particularly b...

Vote where they would need to get 60 #. that would fail and then mcconnell would make a move the change the rules and it would require 50 votes to do that. >> nbcs capitol hill correspondent, casey hunt. thank you for that caseys explanation tonight is germane to our discussion because the senate judiciary committee today voted to advance supreme court nominee and federal judge neil gorsuch to the senate floor where he will likely face a phil buster. i spoke earlier this will evening to democrat...

It is not -- it is possible, not probable, but it is possible that could be. done away with too. so what that means is that any notion, any semblance of bipartisanship, which is required in the senate to reach that 60-vote threshold would be gone. it will look like the house, which we saw what happened with health care. they couldnt even get their own party together. if that is so disturbing for those of us who have covered capitol hill for a long time and see this senate as the last bastion of ...

The past saying this isnt who id pick. theyll pursue agreements id disagree with but theyre qualified and theyve chosen a processed fight to block this guy probably because they didnt get merrick garland through but two wrongs dont make a right. >> not just block his advance many to the supreme court, they want to block an up or down vote, thats what the filibuster is, correct? >> theyre using that procedural block which has never been used to stop him. thats why the republicans feel they have t...