Reid said the chamber “must evolve” beyond parliamentary roadblocks. “The American people believe the Senate is broken, and I believe the American people are right.”
After the vote, Obama told reporters at the White House that Republicans had turned nomination fights into a “reckless and relentless tool” to grind the gears of government to a halt and noted that “neither party has been blameless for these tactics.” However, he said, “today’s pattern of obstruction . . . just isn’t normal; it’s not what our founders envisioned.”
Notwithstanding the nuclear option, Obama nominated judges received overwhelming bipartisan support, proving that McConnell was using parliamentary tactics to stall the nomination process for so many highly qualified nominees.
Elections have consequences. The GOP have owned the Senate since 2014 and McConnell is stacking the federal bench (and even the Supreme Court) with nominees who barely get 50 votes.
If you want a politicized federal bench going forward, have at it. Cases will be decided less on the merits, and more about which judge or appellate panel hears the case.