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Overnight Open Thread – Friday Night Death Watch (genghis) »
May 01, 2009
Can Republican Senators Still Block a Judicial Nominee -- In Committee?
DrewM alerted me to this, expressing his doubt on the issue. After all, he reasoned, if a party-line vote in committee could block a nominee from consideration by the full Senate, how did Alito get through?
That sounds pretty convincing to me. But Legal Insurrection argues that that understanding is flawed -- at least one member of each party must give consent to put a nominee through to the whole Senate (which may be quite different from affirmatively voting for that nominee as qualified).
Arlen Specter could be reliably counted on to provide that Republican vote, but now that he's a Democrat, he can't. Leaving that duty to Lindsay Graham.
I'm not at all sure about any of this. It sounds wrong to me. But, either way, I think it's moot; Lindsay Graham or some other bipartisan d-bag will give consent in any event.