Avoiding the Mushroom Cloud
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is poised to trigger the "nuclear option" to get rid of the filibuster this coming week. It's called the "nuclear option" because it will blow up the Senate as we know it. If Frist is successful, maybe some of Bush's nominees will be confirmed, and maybe not. However, the Senate will be degraded from a polarized forum to a lifeless exchange of complaints, barbs and smears. To avoid the "death" of the Senate, some senators of both parties are talking about compromise. There is only one compromise idea that I heard about that I think is good.
The idea I am talking about is not one that is often heard. Most of the compromise ideas have some nominees confirmed in exchange for use of the filibuster later. Such compromises are pointless, because Republicans want their judges and Democrats want their filibuster. But this idea is of a different sort entirely.
It was recommended by democratic Senator Robert C. Byrd and Republican Senator John W. Warner. Their proposal is to create an independent, bipartisan commission, under the jurisdiction of the Senate Judiciary Committee that would choose a pool of judges from which the president could choose to nominate to the Supreme Court. He would not be forced to choose from the pool, but if he did, he could reasonably expect to have fairly clear sailing for his nominees.
This is an excellent idea. The Senate is supposed to advise as well as consent. It would offer advice through this pool of judges. And consent in committee would be fast, and so would consent from the full senate. Filibusters for judicial nominees would be extremely rare.
It may even bring more comity in the Senate.
Of course, this compromise would prevent extremists of the right and the left from being confirmed. This will annoy extremist self-interest groups mightily. But it would make leaders of both parties happy. The public will love it. We do not want extremism in the judicial system. We want judges to interpret the law.
Here is an excellent way for Frist to crawl away from the screws applied by the extremist fundamentalist James Dobson.
I hope senators have the foresight to make such a compromise. It would show the American public and the world that we DO believe in following the rules, and, though Democrats and Republicans battle fiercely, in the end they compromise for the common good of the republic. Our democracy is strong.
This simple compromise will replace a possible mushroom cloud with a beacon of light.
