How will the 'nuclear option' affect future Supreme Court selections?

Senate Republicans' move to kill the filibuster of Supreme Court nominations will have a lasting impact on future nominees and confirmation fights, court watchers say.

After Senate Democrats completed the first successful partisan filibuster of a Supreme Court nominee on Thursday, the Republican majority invoked the "nuclear option." By nuking the filibuster, Republicans lowered the vote threshold necessary to confirm Judge Neil Gorsuch from 60 votes to 51 votes, and the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals judge was confirmed to the high court Friday. The Senate's action makes it easier for future nominees to earn confirmation along similarly partisan lines.

Court watchers expect the change to affect the calculus of who President Trump, or future presidents, pick next to fill high court vacancies.

"As a result of the filibuster, presidents can now pick judges further from the median — that is more conservative or more liberal," said Josh Blackman, a South Texas College of Law professor and conservative, in an email. "There is no longer the need to assuage moderates in either party."

Liberals agree. Lena Zwarensteyn, director of strategic engagement for the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy, said nuking the filibuster further politicized the confirmation process.