9 senators tried to save the filibuster. Here's how they failed.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Thursday invoked the "nuclear option," killing the filibuster for Supreme Court confirmation votes. Senate Democrats in 2013, then in control of the upper house, did the same thing for most other federal nominees. In each case, supporters argued the change was necessary to overcome minority obstructionism and proceed with the business of governing.

Though this week's vote passed along party lines, many Republicans expressed opposition to the nuclear option earlier this year. And in the run-up to Thursday's vote, a bipartisan group of nine senators made a secret, last-ditch effort to save the filibuster. Politico reports on why they failed:

Politico's 20-plus sources disagreed on whether the project to save the filibuster ever stood a real chance, but they agreed the "gap between the two parties was too broad and mistrust" too widespread for the group to succeed.

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Read the rest of Politico's in-depth account here, or check out this analysis from The Week's Edward Morrissey on whether the modern filibuster was even worth saving.