OPINION:
For years there have been threats of using the “nuclear option” in the U.S. Senate, effectively changing more than 200 years of precedent. It had never been used until earlier this month, when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, pulled the nuclear trigger. He stripped Republican lawmakers of their power to offer amendments, using a parliamentary procedure to change chamber rules so 51 votes could pass the rule motion instead of 67. Incredibly, he pulled this stunt to avoid an embarrassing vote on President Obama’s jobs bill.
If the Senate changes hands, which many are predicting will happen in the next election, Republicans can say, “You started it” to the Democrats. To change 200 years of precedent for a political stunt is simply unwise.
CHRISTOPHER S. MOODY
Gaithersburg
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