On the eve of civil war, in December 50 bc and the first week of January 49, illegality became official where one would least expect it: in the Senate. On 1 December Gaius Scribonius Curio, a tribune of the plebs whose support had been bought by Caesar, said openly what nearly everyone else was thinking:

It was obvious that both powerful men threatened the republic and the freedom of its institutions, and this statement made it official in the place of greatest authority. Curio's proposal was accepted decisively, with 370 votes in favour and only 20 (or 22) against. Considering that everyone knew who he was and on which side he stood, it is clear from this episode how narrow was the ‘parliamentary’ base of the factio, now that it rested more and more on Pompey. It should not be forgotten either that the senators en masse were unstable and little inclined to factional alignment – it was not easy to predict their behaviour.