WASHINGTON, Dec. 12 (UPI) -- A spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid says Democrats don't plan to filibuster the nomination of Samuel A. Alito Jr. to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The comment was in response to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., threat that he would strip Democrats of the filibuster power if they block the vote on Alito, reports The Washington Post.
"As far as I can tell, the only person talking about a filibuster is Senator Frist and some of the far-right fringe groups," Jim Manley, aspokesman for Reid, told The Post. "This kind of talk is silly and unhelpful."
Frist reportedly told "Fox News Sunday" it would be against "the intent of the Founding Fathers and our Constitution" to deny Alito an up-or-down vote in the Senate.
Last week, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., said although he expects close questioning of Alito at next month's hearings, he does not detect strong sentiment for using the filibuster to stall a vote, The Post reported.
