Back on January 4, when the current session of the Senate commenced, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R.-Tenn.) gave a macho address warning that if Senate Democrats continued filibustering President Bush's judicial nominees, Senate Republicans would change Senate rules to disallow such filibusters.
Back then, Frist vowed to call a vote on a Bush nominee in February to test Senate Democrats. "If my Democratic colleagues exercise self-restraint and don't filibuster judicial nominees, Senate traditions will be restored," Frist said. "It will then be unnecessary to change Senate procedures. Self-restraint on the use of the filibuster for nominations-the same self-restraint that Senate minorities exercised for more than two centuries-will alleviate the need for any action. But, if my Democratic colleagues continue to filibuster judicial nominees, the Senate will face this choice: Fail to do its constitutional duty, or reform itself, restore its traditions, and do what the Framers intended." Now Frist's threat is looking more and more like a bluff.
