nuclear option

Definition

A dramatic parliamentary maneuver where the majority party unilaterally changes Senate rules, typically to eliminate the filibuster for certain votes. Called 'nuclear' because it's theoretically devastating but both parties keep doing it anyway.

Example Usage

The Senate majority leader threatened to invoke the nuclear option to confirm Supreme Court nominees with a simple majority rather than 60 votes.

Origin

Coined by former Republican Senator Trent Lott in 2003, comparing the move to nuclear warfare's mutual assured destruction.

Fun Fact

Both parties have condemned and then used the nuclear option when convenient—Democrats did it for executive appointments in 2013, Republicans for Supreme Court nominees in 2017.

Source: Senate procedural terminology

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