Reid to go nuclear on executive branch employee votes

To the great delight of his rabid base, Senate Majority Harry Reid is about to conduct a vote that would change Senate rules, the effect of which would be to allow for a simple majority to confirm executive branch employees. Politico: Majority Leader Harry Reid charged on Thursday that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has "broken" his promises to consider President Barack Obama's executive branch nominations, as the Nevada Democrat prepared to move forward with the "nuclear option" to change Senate rules. Reid filed cloture on a bloc of seven Obama nominees on Thursday afternoon, setting the stage for a potential vote on invoking the nuclear option on Tuesday. If Republicans continue to filibuster any or all of those presidential selections, the Nevada Democrat will force through his proposed rules change, he told reporters. Reid's nuclear option comes in two parts. It would require a simple majority to change Senate rules, rather than the 67 now needed. And it would...(Read Full Post)