Or maybe not

Galley Slaves makes a point. Just as one can argue the rightness of Bush's policies based on who it pisses off, one can make certain assumptions about this deal based on who likes it:

Sayeth Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL:

[we are] heartened that the crisis has been averted and the right to filibuster preserved for upcoming Supreme Court nominations. We are confident that a Supreme Court nominee who won’t even state a position on Roe v. Wade is the kind of "extraordinary circumstance" this deal envisions.

And the summary nails it on the head: If Democratic senators agree with Keenan then we have an answer to whether this was a deal or a capitulation on the part of Senate Republicans.

Precisely what I and others feared about any "agreement" to end filibusters. Orrin Hatch was right; they should have demolished this with a rule-change when all these shenanigans began.