Senators Defuse Filibuster Feud

Filibuster Deal Clears The Way For Votes On Some Judicial Nominees

(CBS/AP)  Apart from the judicial nominees named in the agreement, Reid also said Democrats would clear the way for votes on David McKeague, Richard Griffin and Susan Neilson, all named to the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Assuras added that although the White House called the deal a positive development, the real question is whether it will hold when there is a Supreme court position to fill perhaps in the near future.

"Many of these nominees have waited for quite some time to have an up-or-down vote and now they are going to get one. That's progress," presidential press secretary Scott McClellan said. "We will continue working to push for up or down votes for all the nominees."

The deal was sealed around the table in Sen. John McCain's office, across the street from the Capitol where senators had expected an all-night session of speech-making, prelude to Tuesday's anticipated showdown.

"We tried to avert a crisis in the United States Senate and pull the institution back from a precipice," said McCain, who led the compromise effort with Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb.

Nominally, the issue at hand was Mr. Bush's selection of Owen, a member of the Texas Supreme Court, to a seat on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans.

In fact, as the rhetoric suggested, the stakes were far broader, with Republicans maneuvering to strip Democrats of their right to filibuster and thus block current and future nominees to the appeals court and Supreme Court.

There currently is no vacancy on the high court, although one or more is widely expected in Mr. Bush's term. Chief Justice William Rehnquist's coincidental presence in the Capitol during the day was a reminder of that. At age 80 and battling thyroid cancer, he entered the building in a wheelchair on his way to the doctor's office.

"I think this sends a very direct signal to the president that you need to consult with congress a little bit more before you send up judicial nominees," reports Borger.

The agreement came as Frist and Reid steered the Senate toward a showdown on Mr. Bush's nominees and historic filibuster rules, under which a minority can prevent action unless the majority gains 60 votes.

Senate rules have permitted opponents to block votes on judicial nominees by mounting a filibuster, a parliamentary device that can be stopped only by a 60-vote majority.

But Republicans threatened to supersede that rule by simple majority vote.

A CBS News poll had found that by a 2-1 margin, respondents still favored needing 60 votes to confirm court nominees. But only ten percent of the public was paying very close attention to the debate.

Dr. James C. Dobson, head of the Focus on the Family, one of the conservative groups that had made an end to judicial filibusters a top priority, said the agreement "represents a complete bailout and a betrayal by a cabal of Republicans and a great victory for united Democrats."