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Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Morning

By Jeralyn, Section Judiciary
Posted on Tue May 17, 2005 at 11:48:18 PM EST
Tags: Priscilla Owen (all tags)
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The nuclear option begins this morning. Bill Frist has announced he will seek a vote on Priscilla Owne - an extremist whom Texans say wants to rewrite law from the bench. The Washington Post has this script for how it will play out.

At 9:30 a.m. today, the Senate will begin debating Bush's nomination of Priscilla R. Owen, an abortion opponent on the Texas Supreme Court who was nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, based in New Orleans.

On Thursday or Friday, Frist and other Republican senators are likely to file a motion seeking cloture, or an end to debate. One session day must pass before a vote to end debate, so a vote would be held and Republicans would expect to get fewer than 60 votes to confirm Owen.

Frist aides say he has not decided exactly what would occur next. But the scenario most widely expected among senators in both parties is that he would seek a ruling from the chair -- Vice President Cheney, if it looked as if the vote was going to be close -- that filibustering judicial nominations is out of order. Assuming the chair agreed, Reid would then object and ask that the ruling of the chair be tabled. Most Republicans would then vote against the Democratic motion, upholding the ruling. Then the Senate would move to a vote on Owen, and a precedent will have been set that it takes 51 votes, not 60, to cut off debate on a judicial nomination.

Please call your senator right now and ask them to oppose this abuse of power.

Here's some sites to get up to speed on Priscilla Owen:

< Media Acknowledges Prior Allegations of Koran Desecration | Sen. Harry Reid's Filibuster Floor Speech >

  • The Online Magazine with Liberal coverage of crime-related political and injustice news

  • Contribute To TalkLeft


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    Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Morning | 10 comments (10 topical)
    Re: Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Mornin (none / 0) (#1)
    by Darryl Pearce on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 12:59:10 PM EST
    ...well, I hope that helps but still. I'm so disillusioned that whomever is on the "other side" will send agents to pretent to be on "our side" to foment our discontent so that the "other side" can say See how they're unreasonable. Dirty tricks and double crosses are so depressing. And I haven't even had a drink tonight.

    Re: Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Mornin (none / 0) (#2)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 12:59:10 PM EST
    This will be fun to watch!

    Re: Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Mornin (none / 0) (#3)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 12:59:10 PM EST
    This will be fun to watch!
    Glad you think so--personally, I'm scared . . .

    Re: Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Mornin (none / 0) (#4)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 12:59:11 PM EST
    Frist is a moron and if he thinks this is going to kick start his campaign he needs a new consultant

    Re: Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Mornin (none / 0) (#5)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 12:59:11 PM EST
    I think the American Fundamentalists need to do some serious prosletyzing because THEY'RE NOT CONVERTING US FAST ENOUGH TO EVER EVER BE A MAJORITY IN THIS COUNTRY.

    Re: Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Mornin (none / 0) (#6)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 12:59:11 PM EST
    Thank God this is getting over with...what a waste of time... Do Republicans love the sound of their own voices? Poll after poll has shown that while the public thinks Bush should be able to nominate judges (duh!!), they are not in love with the idea of changing Senate rules to allow one party to ram through judges with just a 51% margin... Imagine the shrieking if Clinton had nominated one far-left pro-abortion anti-gun judge after another and the Senate had eliminated the filibuster before Republicans regained control, and had just rammed them all through? Blood in the streets? Does anyone doubt it? My personal opinion- The Republicans are full of sound and fury, and if they want to change the rules, they can...but they'll pay the price like the 90's Repubs did when they tried to hijact first the House then the White House... So I'm going to sit back and enjoy the show...whatever happens...

    Re: Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Mornin (none / 0) (#7)
    by The Heretik on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 12:59:11 PM EST
    Reid offers to confirm moderate nominees now, Frist wants Owen and Brown considered first. Now Specter is covering his butt to keep his job. C Span 2 has it, and I hope I can hold down my breakfast watching this.

    Re: Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Mornin (none / 0) (#8)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 12:59:11 PM EST
    Enjoy it, Heretik...this sort of show only comes around every ten-fifteen years...the last was Clinton's impeachment party nearly eight years ago...let the games begin!!!

    Re: Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Mornin (none / 0) (#9)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 12:59:11 PM EST
    I'd prefer the old fashioned bread and circuses, folks.

    Re: Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Mornin (none / 0) (#10)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 12:59:12 PM EST
    I know what Sophocles would say here...
    "O, let it come, let it come,/that best of fates that waits on my last day./Surely best fate of all. Let it come, let it come!/That I may never see one more day's light!"
    I'm conflicted over this. Half of me says to let the Republicans start removing our freedoms at a more rapid pace so as to expose their true nature. The other half is angry at those who were entrusted with upholding progressive values in Washington and are failing miserably (because most of them lied / are bought and paid for by Corporate interests).

    Frist to Open with Priscilla Owen Weds. Morning | 10 comments (10 topical)