Recall that in 2005, Republicans contemplated invoking the nuclear option over a matter of substance — to stop Democrats from using filibusters to delay judicial confirmations. Before that crisis was defused, one Democratic senator railed against the GOP plan as an attempt to trample the rights of the minority, calling it a violation of “the constitutional principles of checks and balances” and declaring, “If there were ever an example of an abuse of power, this is it. The filibuster is the last check we have against the abuse of power in Washington.”

The senator’s name? Harry Reid.