Filibuster talks flag, Senate braces for showdown

Filibuster talks flag, Senate braces for showdown

WASHINGTON (AP)— Senators prepared for a potentially rancorous day today — even by recent standards of partisan unpleasantness — as Democratic leaders threatened to change filibuster rules to stop Republicans from blocking White House nominees for top executive jobs. Several Senate votes were scheduled to test whether Republicans will allow simple-majority confirmations of a handful of long-stalled nominations. Some senators held out hopes for a breakthrough early today after one didn’t come in a rare, three-hour private meeting of nearly all 100 senators Monday night.