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Nov 21, 2013 · Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) used the nuclear option Thursday morning, meaning he called for a vote to change the Senate rules by a simple majority vote. It passed, 52 to 48.
In the United States Senate, the nuclear option is a parliamentary procedure that allows the Senate to override a standing rule by a simple majority, avoiding the two-thirds supermajority normally required to invoke cloture on a measure amending the Standing Rules.
- Background
- Trump Nominees’ Confirmations
- Conclusion
- See Also
In 2013, Senate Democrats accused the Republican minority of obstructing a number of President Barack Obama’s nominees, including two to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Speaking on the floor of the Senate on November 21, 2013, Reid said, “During this Congress—the 113th Congress—the United States Senate has wasted an unprecedented amount of time ...
The lowered threshold for cabinet confirmations has resulted in approval of six of President Trump's cabinet nominees with fewer than 60 votes. Those six are: Attorney General Jeff Sessions (who received 52 votes), Education Secretary Betsy DeVos (51 votes), EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt (52 votes), Secretary of State Rex Tillerson (56 votes), Sec...
On February 23, 2017, Sen. Ted Cruz thanked former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid for sponsoring the 2013 Senate rule change that lowered the number of votes needed to confirm a presidential nominee, saying that the change allowed three of President Trump's cabinet nominees to be approved with fewer than the 60 votes that had been necessary befo...
Nov 21, 2013 · Known as the “nuclear option,” the procedural maneuver allows the majority party to change the Senate rules with a 51-person vote, in this case used to make it more difficult for the minority...
- CBS News
- 4 min
Apr 6, 2017 · The “nuclear option” is a last-resort, break-in-case-of-emergency way for the majority party in the Senate to overcome obstruction by the minority. All it actually involves is...
- Senior Political Reporter
Jan 8, 2015 · After a full year of threats, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Thursday finally moved to scrap the Senate's arcane filibuster rules for some presidential nominations, a historic...
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Mar 27, 2017 · what is the nuclear option? Under that option, nominations could be approved with a simple majority in the 100-member Senate. Now, it takes 60 votes to clear parliamentary hurdles and set up an up-or-down vote on the nominee.
