Democrats poised for a big night in the Senate?

[politicallefty]

...or alternatively, Reid getting ballsy and threatening to "nuke" the GOP like they did back in Bush years.

It's very unlikely he'll nuke the filibuster entirely. At the least, I would hope it is ended for judicial nominations (not to mention, Republicans wouldn't hesitate if they had a Senate majority with a Republican President). To me, the prospect of four more years of Obama judicial appointments is exciting, especially if a conservative seat opens up at the Supreme Court. Reid needs to prepare for this possibility now. If Obama gets the opportunity to fill a conservative seat, WWIII is upon us.

Right now, it does look like Reid will pursue some reform to the filibuster. Hopefully, it will actually make a difference. Respecting the rights of the minority should not mean tyranny of the minority, as we have had as of late.

[politicallefty]

I totally agree. He should be pushing appointments forward at a faster pace. However, his total confirmation rate is only barely behind Clinton and Bush as an average per term (and particularly very close to Bush, who really pushed judicial nominations through the Senate). I definitely agree that filibuster reform needs to be done ASAP in the event of a Supreme Court opening. Even a Ginsburg replacement would be hard to confirm, let alone what would happen if one of the five conservatives leaves during the next four years. I've thought, though, that the President's ace in the hole is to appoint a Senator, which tends to make opposition in the Senate especially hard (Amy Klobuchar comes to mind, if necessary).