Yesterday, in what has become standard operating procedure in the era of Republican obstruction, Senate Majority Leader Reid had to file a cloture petition to end the silent filibuster of a judicial nominee. Like many others who have required cloture, 11th Circuit nominee Jill Pryor doesn't face any real opposition. In fact, she was approved unanimously by the Judiciary Committee.

Pryor is the 100th Obama judicial nominee to need a cloture petition (as compared to 18 for the entire Bush Administration). (Since some cloture petitions before this year were cleared up without the need to hold a cloture vote, Pryor will be the 76th Obama judicial nominee rather than the 100th to have a cloture vote.)

In 2014, not one judicial nominee has been able to get a confirmation vote without first needing a cloture vote to break a Republican filibuster. Think about it: Republicans have refused to consent to even one judicial confirmation vote this year. The great progress Americans have seen during the past few months in getting judges confirmed has been in spite of GOP obstruction, not because of GOP cooperation.

Not that they have any problems with the nominees, most of whom are ultimately confirmed with overwhelming and often unanimous Republican support. So rather than confirming blocks of nominees in quick voice votes or by unanimous consent, the Senate is forced to hold time-consuming roll-call cloture and confirmation votes for each individual nominee (often with hours of time required between the two votes). At least during President Obama's first term, a number of cloture petitions were vitiated, meaning that Republicans eventually allowed a confirmation vote without the need for a cloture vote. But that doesn't happen anymore.

The Republican goal is what it has been since President Obama took office: Gum up the works and keep vacancies open as long as possible in order to minimize the president's impact on the nation's judiciary, and in order to maximize opportunities for a Republican president to fill the bench with right-wing ideologues. Senate Democrats are right to fight the obstruction and to allow the Senate to fulfill its constitutional responsibility of keeping our nation's courts functioning.

Just imagine the damage to our courts if Republicans control the Senate – and the confirmation process – during President Obama's last two years.