Gang of Fourteen Fractures

Hail, hail, the gang's all here!

Oops! Not anymore!

The Gang of Fourteen has defectors.

As some Democrats threaten to filibuster the nomination of Samuel Alito, some members of the infamous Gang are putting them on notice.

Senators Mike DeWine and Lindsey Graham have warned that they will not side with the Dems if they plan to resort to f-ing Bush's Supreme Court nominee.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A group of centrists interested in averting Senate gridlock over President Bush's judgeship nominees caucused Thursday on prospects for Supreme Court hopeful Samuel Alito.

But two Republican members of the so-called "Group of 14" already have said they do not consider any questions about Alito's elevation from the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to be serious enough to fit the kind of "extraordinary" circumstances that the group has said would justify a Democratic filibuster.

After the group's first meeting on Alito, Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colorado, told reporters there was "a sense that we're still together and keeping this a civil and orderly process at this point."

He said the Gang of 14 "is not going to blow up."

I guess that would all depend on what the meaning of "blow up" is.

Yesterday, DeWine said that he doubted "anyone would think that this would constitute what our group of 14 termed 'extraordinary circumstances' that would justify a filibuster." According to DeWine, "This is a nomination of a judge who is clearly within the mainstream of conservative thought."

The day that Bush announced Alito's nomination, DeWine said, "People like Lindsey Graham and I, who were part of that group, I think you can bet we'll be willing to vote to change the rules of the Senate so that we do not have a filibuster."

It's telling that DeWine says "were part of that group."

At a press conference on Wednesday, Graham said that he would not support a filibuster "based on a judicial philosophy difference, or an ideologically driven difference." Graham concluded, "I don't believe that, with all sincerity, I could let that happen."

It appears that Salazar seems to be putting on a happy face even though both DeWine and Graham made it clear that they would join with Bill Frist to activate the Constitutional Option if Dems try to filibuster Alito.

The Gang of Fourteen loses its power when it's a Gang of Twelve.

After the group's session today, Gang member Joe Lieberman said, "Everybody thinks it is too early to decide whether there are 'extraordinary circumstances.' There's a lot to read ... a lot to talk about."

I suspect the Gang decideed to say it's too early because it's so vague. DeWine and Graham could go along with the fact that it's early. The Gang can find common ground by agreeing it's early in the process.

By saying that all Gang members are on board with the position that it's early, they can truthfully state that the Gang hasn't "blown up." They can still appear to be centrists interested in cooperating on a bipartisan basis.

Nonetheless, DeWine and Graham wasted no time in notifying the Dems that there would be Gang warfare if they attempted a filibuster.

AP writes:

After a flurry of filibuster talk immediately following Alito's nomination, Senate Democrats now are taking a wait-and-see stance.

"I don't know a single Democrat who is saying that it's time for a filibuster, that we should really consider it," Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the Senate's No. 2 Democrat, said after meeting with Alito on Wednesday. "It's way too early."

That's funny.

Even before Bush announced his nominee, the New York Times reported:

[O]n Sunday, [Reid] did not rule out the possibility that Democrats would try to block a nominee by a filibuster or refusing to close debate and vote.

From CNN's Late Edition, October 30:

BLITZER: The New York Times, among other publications, says one of the front-runners that the president can name, maybe even as early as tomorrow, is Samuel Alito of New Jersey. He's a third circuit court federal judge right now. You've looked into his background. If the president were to nominate him, would that be acceptable to you?

REID: Well, I'm not going to rule out anyone. I've -- that is not one of the names that I've suggested to the president. In fact, I've done the opposite. I think it would create a lot of problems.

...If he wants to divert attention from all of his many problems, he can send us somebody that is going to create a lot of problems.

But I think this time he would be ill advised to do that. But the right wing, the radical right wing is pushing a lot of his buttons, and he may just go along with them.

BLITZER: What about some of the other potential names that have been out there that could potentially spark a Democratic filibuster and what the -- what is often called the nuclear option whereby the Republican majority, 55 Republicans, they would then pass a rule that would eliminate the filibuster, and they would only need 51 votes to confirm a nominee.

REID: Yes, Wolf, we're going to do everything we can to make this a hearing that the American people are proud of. But a lot of that is up to the president.

I think the Times got it right. Reid did not rule out f-ing Bush's nominee.

Then, on Tuesday, Senator Barbara Boxer said, "The filibuster's on the table."

Now, Durbin insists that he doesn't know a "single Democrat who is saying that it's time for a filibuster, that we should really consider it." He also says, "It's way too early."

It makes sense that Durbin would claim that the Dems aren't thinking about a filibuster, but not because "it's way too early."

They aren't considering it because THEY WOULD FAIL IF THEY TRIED.