Reply #8: I'm no expert on these things... [View All]

[Wordie]

But I think that they would be separate votes. The democrats can filibuster, and that prevents the final vote on Alito from happening. I think, though, that Frist can schedule a vote on the nuclear option, even though the Dems are filibustering. I'm not certain here exactly how it all works, but I think that's the bare-bones outline of it.

The crucial thing at any rate is that enough Senators are convinced not to go nuclear. The agreement of the Gang of 14 was that there would be no filibusters of judicial nominees except in "extraordinary circumstances." The case must be made that this is extraordinary.