Taegan Goddard's Political Wire

May 10, 2005

Frist to Use Nuclear Option on Owens Nomination

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) "plans for Texas Supreme Court Justice Priscilla Owen to be the judicial nomination on which he uses the 'nuclear option' against Democratic filibusters later this month," the Washington Times reports.

"The Republican sources, both on and off Capitol Hill, say the choice of Justice Owen for the precedent-setting vote is based in part on the political calculation that she is a sure winner and, as one source said, 'a great face' for this issue."

The New York Times says by midweek, Republicans "expect to have in place at least four nominees... for a showdown over the rules."

Meanwhile, the Washington Post highlights the real reason for the Senate rules fight: "The most far-reaching implication of the rule change could come this summer, if one or more Supreme Court justices retire. Without the possibility of a filibuster, it would be much easier for Bush to appoint a conservative to the Supreme Court who might not make it if at least five Democratic votes were need to reach 60."

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Taegan D. Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country, including the Washington Post, USA Today, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer and Christian Science Monitor.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

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