Thune's suitcase nuke – and the filibuster's latest blast injury

It was a full-on nuclear explosion.

Just like the Pacific Testing Grounds near the Marshall Islands and French Polynesia.

But this political blast tore through the Senate chamber.

In November 2013, late Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., detonated the first Senate "nuclear option." He curbed the filibuster to confirm executive branch nominees — except the Supreme Court. Rather than 60 votes to break a filibuster, such nominees would only need a simple majority.

SENATE GOP LEADER MOVES TO LOWER FILIBUSTER THRESHOLD FOR TRUMP NOMINEES THROUGH NUCLEAR OPTION

Former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., ignited the second "nuclear option" in 2017. The Kentuck...