The "Nuclear Option" sugggested by Lott against filibusters

Let's go to the constitution and the Senate rules, shall we?

First the constitutionality of the Senate Rules:

Article I.
Section 5.

Clause 2: Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behaviour, and, with the Concurrence of two thirds, expel a Member.

Now the Senate rules in question:

Standing Rules of The Senate
RULE XXII

PRECEDENCE OF MOTIONS

Section 2.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of rule II or rule IV or any other rule of the Senate, at any time a motion signed by sixteen Senators, to bring to a close the debate upon any measure, motion, other matter pending before the Senate, or the unfinished business, is presented to the Senate, the Presiding Officer, or clerk at the direction of the Presiding Officer, shall at once state the motion to the Senate, and one hour after the Senate meets on the following calendar day but one, he shall lay the motion before the Senate and direct that the clerk call the roll, and upon the ascertainment that a quorum is present, the Presiding Officer shall, without debate, submit to the Senate by a yea-and-nay vote the question:

"Is it the sense of the Senate that the debate shall be brought to a close?" And if that question shall be decided in the affirmative by three-fifths of the Senators duly chosen and sworn -- except on a measure or motion to amend the Senate rules, in which case the necessary affirmative vote shall be two-thirds of the Senators present and voting -- then said measure, motion, or other matter pending before the Senate, or the unfinished business, shall be the unfinished business to the exclusion of all other business until disposed of.

<snip>

The constitution grants the power to the rules of the proceedings for the Senate to the Senate. The Senate has determined that altering the rules requires a vote of two-thirds of the voting members. The Senate has also determined that moving to close a debate in order to vote requires a three-fifths vote of the members of the Senate.

It would be unconstitutional for the Senate to ignore their rules in the matter of filibusters.

Trent Lott suggests ignoring the rules of the Senate AND THE CONSTITUTION with a dictatorship of the chair of the Senate.

This information is importnat and needs to get to every Democratic Senator we have.

Do NOT let them violate the constitution with their fascist "nuclear option"!

a change of the Rules by fiat of the Chairman of the Senate Rules Committee. That Chairman right now is....oh, yeah. Trent Lott. :eyes:

These people are power mad.

a two-thirds majority vote is required to change the rules.

What he suggests is in flagrant violation of the rules of the Senate.

Now I know many of these voters don't even BOTHER to read up on what their elected officials do.

Oh well.

:kick:

How come we never heard about rules like this when the Democrats were the majority before dying in plane crashes and all. What's that next line in the Declaration of Independence about the people having the right to overthrow their gummit when it becomes constitutionally dysfunctional?