Jeff Merkeley, along with five other Senators and a Senator-elect, has started a petition calling for filibuster reform. They would like to require a Senator to speak in order to filibuster. The Democrats can use what proponents call the constitutional option, which would allow for a simple majority to change Senate protocol. Critics, however, call it the nuclear option, referring to the likely backlash from the minority party. Majority Leader Harry Reid has said that filibuster reform is a priority, and could be one of the first orders of business.