Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid has a profound grasp of Senate procedure and a new nothing-left-to-lose attitude that is going to make Republican leader Mitch McConnell's job for the next year and a half a living hell. Starting with
Loretta Lynch's nomination to be attorney general—a vote that has set new records for Republican obstruction, both in the length of the delay and the fact that Republicans are obstructing their own majority. Here's
his plan.
Senate rules allow any member, when recognized on the floor, to make a motion to proceed to a nomination on the calendar. By tradition this is a prerogative of the majority leader, who enjoys the right of first recognition, but ordinary senators are not prohibited from trying. It just never happens.
So let's say Reid tries. The next thing that would happen is that Republicans would object, and Reid would need 51 votes to override their objection and move forward. This is where his plan is likely to fail.
That's where the plan probably fails, but also where it gets interesting. Because there are five Republican senators—Sens. Jeff Flake (AZ), Orrin Hatch (UT), Lindsey Graham (SC), Susan Collins (ME) and Mark Kirk (IL)—all saying they will vote for Lynch. That's enough to get the 51 to move forward. That's the political pressure point.
"Democrats will frame those procedural votes as a test of the GOP's willingness to confirm the first female African-American AG. That will put those GOP [senators who support Lynch] in a tough spot — precisely where Reid and Democrats probably want to put them," said Sarah Binder, a Senate expert and George Washington University professor.
Kirk, running for re-election in Illinois and one of the most endangered incumbents in 2016, is probably the primary focus here. The longer his own party takes to confirm Lynch—the longer they refuse to hold this vote over issues completely unrelated to her qualifications—the more Kirk is sullied by being a Republican. But he probably can't stick his neck out alone on this, so will the other four want to provide him cover? And what will McConnell do, needing to keep every seat he now has to retain his majority?
This procedural move is unprecedented in modern times. But so is the Lynch nomination and the delay that Republicans have created in moving on it. Reid's taking this action would reinforce that and could bring more attention to just how toxic the Republicans are being on this one. At the very least, Reid should do everything in his power to make McConnell's job miserable.