Senate ready to speed up confirmation of judges over Democrats' objections

Senate Republicans are about to face a multi-month threat to change the rules to speed up the appointment of candidates for President Trump's judiciary.

A vote to advance a move could take place as early as Tuesday and comes after months of dilatory tactics used by Senate Democrats wanting to slow down Trump's efforts to appoint new federal judges.

The amendment of the Senate rules would reduce the length of the debate from 30 hours to two hours for district court judges and candidates for executive power.

The Republicans, who control the majority, plan to change the rules with 51 votes, which would prevent Democrats from obstructing change in what many see as a "nuclear option" maneuver.

Democrats oppose change, even though it corresponds to a bipartisan agreement approved temporarily under the Democratic majority at the 113th Congress.

Democrats believe that reducing debate time will limit their ability to scrutinize Trump administration candidates who deserve closer scrutiny.

But Republicans argue that the minority simply loses its time in order to slow down the number of seats for candidates to the presidency of the Republican President in the federal judiciary and key positions in the administration.

The Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., At a recent hearing on the rule change, said the Democrats had prolonged the debate for the candidates they were opposed to not.

"It's pretty obvious that the only goal is to gain time on the ground," McConnell said.

The delaying tactics of both parties have increased over the last election cycles, with each party becoming more and more determined to block the candidates for judicial office from an opposing president.

Senator Roy Blunt, R-Mo., Who chairs the Senate Rules Committee, said that a permanent solution would put an end to this problem.

"The two sides will continue to talk about how we deal with this problem until we stick to it," he said recently.

A vote to change the rules depends on another legislative fight. The Senate is expected to vote Monday afternoon on funding for disaster relief for states and territories, but Democrats are opposed to this measure as they want additional money for Puerto Rico. If the bill is blocked, the Senate will vote Tuesday on the amendment to the regulations.