Nuclear Bomb in the Senate

I am not shocked by the extremism of the Senate, after all, a majority of them follow an extremist President.  Removing the filibuster from Senate rules on Court nominations is a dangerous move.  This move empowers the majority, no matter how slim, to pass nominations on the slimmest of margins.  Over a Presidential term or two, there can be large amounts of nominations. This change is short sighted, as it moves us from a Republic towards a Democracy. Thomas Jefferson and James Madison warned of this downfall in the Federalist Papers. This check and balance to slow bad nominations (both parties have them) has now been eliminated. So, if you want an activist Judge on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals to undermine appeals to EPA regulations, such as Obama does, then you appoint extremists whom your own party will support.  It becomes majority rule, and there is nothing the minority party at the time can do.  This undermines 200+ years of precedent and speeds the process for the majority party of the time.

To understand this argument, one must understand the difference between a Democracy and a Democratic Republic.  First let us start with a Democracy, since that is what we are moving towards.  According to Merriam Webster, and Democracy is defined as the following:

1

a :  government by the people; especially :  rule of the majority

b :  a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections

2

:  a political unit that has a democratic government

3

capitalized :  the principles and policies of the Democratic party in the United States <from emancipation Republicanism to New Deal Democracy — C. M. Roberts>

4

:  the common people especially when constituting the source of political authority

5

:  the absence of hereditary or arbitrary class distinctions or privileges

Whereas, a Republic is defined as the following by Merriam Webster:

1

a (1) :  a government having a chief of state who is not a monarch and who in modern times is usually a president (2):  a political unit (as a nation) having such a form of government

b (1) :  a government in which supreme power resides in a body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by elected officers and representatives responsible to them and governing according to law (2) :  a political unit (as a nation) having such a form of government

The differences are slight, and while we are a combination of some parts of both, a move towards pure Democracy is dangerous to the apple cart.  It can upset the balance of powers and become majority rule or "mob rule" if we are not careful to keep the powers in check.

Throughout history, the filibuster has been used by the minority party to slow down or stop appointments of extremist judges when it came to appointments.  This allowed them to check the power of the President to appoint these judges.  The history of appointments shows just how many judges are brought up for confirmation by each President since 1933. Please see the attached file below for specific information:

Appointments by President 1933-2012

And, while Democrats may be basking in further undermining our system of government for their own benefit, what will they do when they lose power?

In 2005, Senator Reid railed against Republicans who were considering the "nuclear option" he enacted today.  "For people to suggest that you can break the rules to change the rules is un-American," said Reid in 2005.  Wow, what a change!  Sound familiar? It's politics as usual, Chicago style, in our Capital these days.  It sounds a lot like Obama's statement regarding our debt when he was a Senator.  Yet, here today, Obama has increased our debt more than any President in history.  But, I digress.  Hypocrisy is commonplace and an accepted form of argument, apparently, by both sides of the aisle.  It is just fine, from their point of view, as long as it advances their political agenda.

Ironically, Liberals always argue for keeping minorities safe within the powers of the government. It seems that they just disenfranchised the minority party when it comes to the selection of judges and executive appointees.  And, while it may serve them well now, they will hate it when Conservatives are elected to the Senate and President.  In the end, that is why I believe Republicans did not exercise this option in 2005, when numerous Bush appointees where unable to get through the nomination process.

Considering the perilous position of Democrats after this disastrous ObamaCare rollout, the bombing popularity of the President, and general distrust of Democrats among the people of this country, this may have been a bad move.  In the short term, it allows Obama to appoint all the activist judges he wants.  However, what will happen in 2014 or 2016? Will they revoke this change?  If not, do they really trust Republicans with this same power?

I, for one, have faith in our original founding documents and structure of our government. It has lead to the most prosperous country ever and has continued to flourish under these rules and principles.  However, I am now concerned that we have started to go down a slippery slope towards Democracy.  After all, a movement to total power of the majority is a scary thing; no matter your political persuasion.  Should Conservatives be excited about the prospect?  Maybe.  After all, the "mob" tends to be with us.  But, is that really the way to run this country?

Related articles

• Nuclear option (en.wikipedia.org)
• Democrats drop the 'nuclear' bomb, so what happens next? (nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com)
• Harry Reid muscles "nuclear option" through the Senate, banning filibusters of Presidential nominees (politicalcrazyness.tumblr.com)
• Nuclear: Reid, Democrats Destroy Filibuster, 52-48 (breitbart.com)
• Flip-flop: Obama railed against 'nuclear option' (utsandiego.com)
• Mary Landrieu statement in 2005 hated the 'nuclear option' (fireandreamitchell.com)
• Harry Reid and the Nuclear Option: A Shortsighted Alternative to Senate Deliberation (heritage.org)
• Democrats Distract Us with Nuclear Option (rushlimbaugh.com)