This Senate Rule Could Stop Democrats From Confirming Biden’s SCOTUS Nominee

With the Senate split 50-50, the provision of Rule 26 that saved Lindsey Graham in 2020 could now doom a similar Democratic effort in 2022.

By Rachel Bovard January 28, 2022

With Justice Stephen Breyer officially announcing his retirement on Thursday (a full 24 hours after the White House announced it for him), Senate Democrats will have a chance to fill a Supreme Court seat, likely before the 2022 midterm elections in November.

But ever since 2017, when Senate Republicans invoked the nuclear option to confirm Supreme Court justices at a simple majority, instead of at the usual 60 votes necessary to break a filibuster, there has been procedurally little minorities can do to prevent a nomination from moving forward (the outright lies, smears, and chaos tactics Senate Democrats employed against Justice Brett Kavanaugh notwithstanding).

This conventional wisdom, however, is true only of Senates that present a clear minority-majority differential. The Senate of 2022 is tied, with 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans, which presents Republicans with an interesting procedural option: denying a quorum in the Senate Judiciary Committee, thus preventing the nomination from being reported out of committee and placed on the calendar, and ultimately moved to the Senate floor.........To Read More....