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Thu. May 19, 2005

Filibuster Ennui

Well, I believe Glenn Reynolds has said something we can all agree with: “I was going to do a big post on filibusters, but I really don’t have anything to say that I haven’t said before. Sorry.”

All the usual suspects on both sides of the spectrum have expended thousands of words on the topic of filibusters already, and I’ve had my say as well. And we all might as well have been writing for next season’s Project Greenlight (of which there won’t be one).

Because Yon Kings are gonna do what they’re gonna do. And the spin and bloviation from both sides over the next few days may be enough induce nausea, from a parade of talking heads spouting about arcane rules and procedures.

But to me, it all comes down to some basic numbers: “Since 1789, the Senate has rejected nearly 20 percent of all nominees to the Supreme Court, many without an up-or-down vote [...] But 208 of the president’s 218 judicial nominees have been approved. That’s right: the Senate has confirmed 95 percent of Mr. Bush’s judicial nominees. That’s a higher percentage of approval than any of his three predecessors achieved.”

To me, those numbers speak for themselves, especially if you remember that while we’re now talking essentially about 10 contested nominees, Clinton had 60 blocked during his term, many of whom were blocked in committee and never got that now precious Up Or Down Vote. This isn’t about obstruction of an entire slate of nominees, as 95% of it has been passed. This isn’t about compromise, as 95% is what most call “near complete victory.” This is about getting it all.

And excessive appetites almost always come back to haunt you. But they’re gonna do what they’re gonna do.