Editorial: Save the filibuster

Friday, May 20, 2005 | 5:23 a.m.

WEEKEND EDITION

May 21 - 22, 2005

There is still time for cooler heads in the U.S. Senate to prevail in the fight over the rule that allows filibustering of presidential judicial nominees. It is almost certain that Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn., will trigger steps on Tuesday leading to his threatened "nuclear option." If successful, this option would end the minority party's ability to block judicial nominees through the time-honored filibuster.

Senators from both parties are scheduled to meet Monday in a final-hour bid to reach a compromise that would save the filibuster. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., tried to negotiate directly with Frist, who is the Senate majority leader and a devotee of President Bush's recalcitrant style. Frist refused to consider any of Reid's offers, including one to withdraw opposition to most of Bush's remaining nominees in exchange for preserving the filibuster rule.

The filibuster is a major reason why our two-party system works -- no one party can completely dominate the other. That's why we hope the Republican senators involved in Monday's talks are more reasonable than Frist.