John, it doesn’t seem right to say the two things–judge deal and Bolton–have nothing to do with one another. I see your technical point (yeah, the rule change on filibusters was just about judges, dramatic Mr. Smith commericals to the contrary). But just about the first thing everyone in the Senate said to me the night the deal went down was “Bolton is happening before recess” or “Frist will push Bolton next” etc. Republicans certainly saw this saving-the-Senate routine as a Bolton oppportunity. And it looks like they couldn’t pull it off, even though they likely eventually will. But right now I think that speaks to just how silly the statesman talk about the deal gang was, which we already knew, than that the deal has failed (though the Dems’ lack of interest in ending obstruction in general is certainly on display tonight).