Explain to me again how this is a "win" for us.....

The gop get the cream of their right-wing picks straight through, no filibuster, but the Dems reserve the right to filibuster in "extreme cases" such as a SCOTUS pick.

What's to stop the gop from using the nuclear option at that point in time?

Or are you telling me that the gop will stick to it's side of the bargain if that were to happen in the next two years....because they are so well-known for their honesty and forthright behaviour up to this point....

Yeah right....

It was a win for non-extremists. One of those gray areas, if I may.

We need more places for the people to go to find people to vote for us. Two are not to my liking.

You use the ground you have in front of you. In this case the "ground" gained is the retention in the Senate of the filibuster; not allowing the executive branch or special interests in the form of the religious right to dictate Senate rules.

That is the win. Expecting anything else is just plain unrealistic.

You have gained absoulutely nothing nada.They can still use the nuclear option at anytime!If you stand your ground and make them use the option you have made them look like control freaks,their approval numbers are already in the thirtys,do you really think they wanted to do this?56% of the American people were against them on this.Let them slit their own throats.All Democrats ever do is give ground,pick your fights and stick to them!

There is such a thing as forcing the hand to act against what is wanted too. Always important to know what hill to die on.

Now it's the John McCain party and they are willing to compromise where the old GOP steamrolled their ideology through congress.

they would appreciate you falling for the illusion.

right. But you got to admit that McCain and Graham can wield some power if they keep their little club together. Wonder how power hungry the 14 are?

People keep celebrating the fact that the GOP was not able to do away with the filibuster. Big deal - that was NEVER the primary goal. The Republicans wanted these judges period. The rightwing knows full well they will one day be in the minority again, why would they want to get rid of the filibuster if they don't have to?

Now the Republicans keep the filibuster for their future use, and still get several of the most radical judges from the previously rejected list of fanatics. Further, they now have an understanding that we won't use the filibuster going forward. There are lots and lots of far rightwing judges for Bush to nominate - and now the floodgates are open.

So Bush gives up a couple of judges. Wow, what a sacrifice. In return he gets several of the nutcases we considered so extraordinarily horrible just a couple days ago that we filibustered them, and worse yet, the GOP gets a promise from the Democrats that we won't filibuster any more. If we do filibuster someone anytime soon, the case will be made that the moderate Republicans were betrayed by the Democrats - and Frist will surely have enough votes to do away with the filibuster and get the rest of the judges he wants anyway.

I just don't see this is a win. It's not a total loss, but it certainly isn't a win. It would appear to me that the Republicans get most of what they wanted, and we get very damn little. Overall, I think we might have had the votes to flat out beat Frist on the nuclear option vote at this time. That would have been a real win.

I admit my analysis may be wrong, but I just don't see how at the moment.

Imajika

and time will tell the same story. You're just prescient, and so am I.

Hey, I wanted to see a win, Lord knows after all of the losses we keep having to stomach. But unfortunately, that want for a win will not color my reaction to this non-win.