Oh no, the House already went and pulled the "nuclear option!"
113th Congress 1st Session
H. RES. 5
Adopting rules for the One Hundred Thirteenth Congress.
In the House of Representatives
Resolved, That the Rules of the House of Representatives of the One Hundred Twelfth Congress, including applicable provisions of law or concurrent resolution that constituted rules of the House at the end of the One Hundred Twelfth Congress, are adopted as the Rules of the House of Representatives of the One Hundred Thirteenth Congress, with amendments to the standing rules as provided in section 2, and with other orders as provided in sections 3, 4, and 5.
House Vote on Passage
Jan 03, 2013 4:56 p.m.
Passed 228/196
They changed the rules... at the beginning of the session... with only a simple majority?! Damn the Republican House leadership, damn Speaker John Boehner and Rules Committee Chairman Pete Sessions, how dare they steamroll and disrespect the minority in a legislative body like that! Where in the Constitution does it say they can do that? Comity is destroyed, and the Representatives will engage in unbridled (if figurative)
nuclear war. The republic is in peril, peril I say!!!!
:: ::
Oh, wait. They changed the rules, at the beginning of the session, on a majority vote? Just like pretty much every other representative organization does, all the time? Well, damn, that seems perfectly reasonable (even if I disagree with them). What's the big deal?
Well, there is no big deal. It only is when footdragging, corrupt Senators and the stale, corporatized press make it one.
The move to curtail and reform the out-of-control filibuster is not coming about through an abusive and disrespectful process. It is a big deal in the sense of a start on fixing an utterly broken and unrepresentative half of the legislative branch of America's government.