Letters to the Editor

• Senate procedural delays that even 60 votes cannot overcome

  [Read the article: British debate highlights the cravenness and complicity of congressional Democratic "leaders"]
  [Read more letters about this article: Here]

  As I understand it, and per the second round of the Cheney/Rockefeller FISA bill that Dodd successfully stalled for a time, here are Dodd's options, should he (or any other single Senator) choose to stand on principle, this time without relenting in the name of hopeless 60-vote-threshold amendment opportunities (and without stopping all other action in the Senate by a one-man obstruction of all activity).

  Neither 60 nor 99 votes can remove these potential Senate obstacles to a speedy passage of the secretly-negotiated FISA bill:

  1. A Senate Majority Leader who honors a member's traditional "hold" on a bill, rather than bringing the bill to the Senate floor.

  2. The two-day wait required before a cloture vote to force an end to debate can be held to overcome an objection/filibuster - before both a vote to proceed to the bill and before a vote on final passage of the bill - after a cloture motion has been filed (during the unlimited debate on a motion to proceed to a bill or during the unlimited debate on the merits of a bill that the Senate has proceeded to consider).

  3. The allotted 30 hours of post-cloture debate prior to a vote on a motion to proceed to a bill that has been brought to the floor by the Majority Leader over the objection of a member, on which debate has been successfully limited by 60 votes for cloture.

  4. The allotted 30 hours of post-cloture debate prior to a vote on final passage of a bill on which debate has been successfully limited by a cloture vote (a bill which "shall be the unfinished business to the exclusion of all other business until disposed of").

  http://www.rules.senate.gov/senaterules/rule22.php

  [Important caveat to what follows: As with the last Iraq supplemental attempt, the following scenario assumes a 'fresh start' for the FISA Sham Compromise in the Senate, without the use of the empty shell of an already-passed bill to bypass certain stages of debate. There has not, at least, been any formal "conference" process, and the bill won't be a "conference report" because the Republicans in the Senate objected to the naming of conferees - though I guess that could now change. Corrections to any oversights or errors are invited and welcome.]

  So, for example (in the normal course of events):

  On a Monday afternoon (tomorrow), Harry Reid (as he did last time) ignores Chris Dodd's hold on the sham FISA compromise bill containing telecom immunity, and asks that the bill be reported (though I believe Dodd is entitled to object to this, in order to delay its introduction until Tuesday) and that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

  Chris Dodd objects (to Reid's motion to proceed). Harry Reid immediately files a cloture motion petition (signed by 16 Senators) Monday to limit debate, in order to speed a vote on his Motion to Proceed to the bill.

  The Senate must wait for a calendar day to pass before voting on that cloture motion.

  Wednesday morning the cloture motion - needing 60 votes - passes. The mandated 30 hours of post-cloture debate (on the motion to proceed) then begins, and cannot be waived without Dodd's assent.

  Midday Thursday (although quite a bit later if Dodd's assent is needed to count overnight hours of adjournment toward the 30 hours) the vote on the motion to proceed is held. It passes by simple majority.

  The Senate is now on the bill, which may or may not be open for amendment (this would be part of the secretly-negotiated deal, no doubt), with unlimited debate.

  Reid immediately moves to limit debate by filing another cloture motion Thursday afternoon (if not later, depending on the run of the 30 hours). Unless the Senate comes in for a very rare Saturday session (they generally skip out on Fridays), that vote must wait until Monday, if Dodd doesn't relent.

  Monday afternoon (Senators don't do Monday mornings), the cloture motion passes with 60 votes. The 30 hours of post-cloture debate then begins and cannot be waived without Dodd's assent.

  Tuesday evening, 6/24 (at the earliest), the vote on final passage of the FISA compromise is held, with a simple majority needed to pass.

  All of this is without any actual filibuster (holding the floor without yielding) being undertaken by Dodd (although he may again make good use of the 30-60 hours of post-cloture debate to make his case).

  Meanwhile, another (year-long) Iraq supplemental funding bill is being negotiated and is intended by the Democratic Party leadership - apparently including Obama - to be a done deal by June 28th (the beginning of their July 4th break):

  Obviously, one of the reasons that we have not gotten the bill on the floor as quickly as I had hoped is that there have been very, very substantial discussions between the House and the Senate, between the House and the White House, and the Senate and the White House about what their thoughts are with respect to various aspects of the supplemental bill and what they would or would not consider a signable bill.

  .

  So I think there have been extensive discussions on that. I am hopeful that when we finally pass something to the President he will sign it and we will have that bill done. As the gentleman indicated, we are aware of the fact that it is timely that we pass this bill certainly within the next 2 weeks. And when I say pass it, not just pass it but have it signed by the President so we have a law in effect that gives the President and the Department of Defense the funds they need to continue the deployment that currently exists. ... - Steny Hoyer, 6/12/08

  With timely objections, action on that too could be postponed for days. Meaning that only one of these bills (leadership's choice) - and possibly neither, if action doesn't kick off tomorrow, and the Senate doesn't stay past June 28th - may be passed before the next week-long Congressional break.

  Permalink Sunday, June 15, 2008 09:00 PM