Sixty votes for Senate Dems?

If Barack Obama wins on November 4th and Democrats extend their dominance in the House, Republicans will have only two weapons remaining in Washington, DC.

First is the Supreme Court.

Back in the days of Franklin Roosevelt, when Democrats last saw their clout soar to these heights, conservative justices shot down much of Roosevelt’s early New Deal legislation.

The Roberts court is pretty conservative — so the clash between the Judiciary, an Obama administration, and the Democratic Congress could be profound.

The second GOP weapon will be the Senate filibuster.

Senate rules allow the minority party to block legislation, unless they’re overwhelmed by a 60-member “cloture” vote.

Only now there appears to be a very real chance that Dems will win a 60-seat majority next month, pushing Republicans further to the margins.

Here’s New York Senator Chuck Schumer’s take on the race, in an interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

As for 60 [Senate seats], it is possible,” said U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). “You can look at the map yourself. But given the red terrain we’re fighting in, it’s very difficult. And I don’t want people to get such high expectations, because it’s hard to win in states like Georgia or Mississippi. It is. And we need some of those states to win.

And read this analysis by the Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza:

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/?hpid=topnews

If Dems do hit the magic 60 number, conservatives — who’ve long opposed an “activist” judiciary — may have to rely on Federal judges to maintain vestiges of their national agenda.