"What is unprecedented is the fact that the Senate, for the first time in 200 years, last Congress chose to filibuster judges for the purpose of defeating them. That had never been done before in the history of the Senate... What Senate Republicans are contemplating doing and what I think they should do is to get us back to the precedents that were established prior to the last Congress, in which judicial appointments were given an up-or-down -- that is, a majority -- vote."
-It will make it easier to confirm nominees in general. On judges now there will be two hours post cloture, and on other nominees it will be eight hours.
Mitch McConnell, March 27, 2005, on the argument for ruling a judicial filibuster out of order. An eventual compromise would allow three Bush judicial nominees to get up-or-down votes, without changing filibuster rules..
-"Senate Republicans have blocked the confirmation of federal appeals court nominee Caitlin Halligan for the second time, denying President Barack Obama a key judicial appointment. Republicans say Halligan is too liberal to sit on U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia and cited [sic] her work on lawsuits against gun manufacturers... A majority of senators, 51, supported her nomination, but Democrats needed 60 votes in the 100 member Senate to get it past Republican objections."
Carl Levin, January 24, 2013, on the Democrats' decision not to push ahead with filibuster reform that would have allowed more up-or-down votes.
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The Associated Press, March 6, 2013