Link: law.com - Article.
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada has said that if the judicial filibuster is eliminated, his party would bring much of the Senate's business to a halt. Given the Senate's need for unanimous consent for even the simplest actions, that threat could be easy to carry out. Frist set a schedule Wednesday that calls for each party to alternate one hour of debate on both Owen and, presumably, the validity of the judicial filibuster itself. Formal debate was set to end at 7:45 p.m. EDT, Wednesday. It was not immediately clear whether debate on Owen, first nominated just more than four years ago for a seat on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, will continue today or even until Friday. But it is widely expected that Frist will make an effort to end debate on Owen by the end of the week by laying down a cloture petition. The petition would then require at least one intervening day that the Senate is in session to "ripen." Under normal Senate rules, a three-fifths majority, or 60 votes, is required to end debate. If that number is not reached, the debate theoretically can continue unabated, with the nominee never coming to the floor for a vote. Senate Republicans, who hold 55 seats, may not win over enough Democrats to invoke cloture and shut off debate, especially on Owen, who was successf
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