It's happening.  Frist & Co are moving toward the "nuclear option" to circumvent the rules of the Senate (for one thing, changing the way the Senate functions without actually changing the rules -- which requires a 67-vote two-thirds majority they don't have) and cut off debate with a simple majority vote. 

The nonpartisan Congressional Research Service concurs; in a report issued last month, they say "the point of a 'nuclear' or 'constitutional' option is to achieve changes in Senate procedure by using means that lie outside the Senate's normal rules of procedure."

On their front page today, the WaPo provides the likely script.  This is undeniably important stuff, and the article is well worth reading.