Roll out the cots! Confirmation of, and details on, the Senate all-nighter

by: Chris Bowers

Wed Apr 28, 2010 at 14:27


I just got word for an aide to the Senate leadership that Democrats will, in fact, hold an all-night session to make Republicans continue voting on Wall Street reform.  This confirms a story from The Hill:

Senate Democratic leaders are planning for an all-night session to put more pressure on Republicans to allow a debate on Wall Street reform.

Republican senators voted for the third time in three days on Wednesday to block an effort to bring a reform bill to the floor.

Democratic aides said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) plans to keep the Senate in session overnight to force Republicans to reconsider their opposition to the Democratic legislation.

Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (Ill.) said leaders had decided to hold a nighttime session to highlight GOP opposition to the Wall Street reform bill.

Here are some details on how this will work:

  1. In a couple hours, Senate Democrats will hold a press conference announcing this plan.  At this time, they will literally roll out cots for members of the media, so they can stay and report on the all-nighter.

  2. Starting this afternoon, after the press confernece, Democrats will begin holding quorum calls to bring the Senate in order. Republicans could, in theory, not show up, and deny a quorum, thus  denying the all-nighter. So, these quorum calls will be the first test of this plan.

  3. Starting at around 11 pm or midnight, once the Senate is in order, Democrats will be asking unanimous consent on the motion to proceed with the Wall Street reform every hour.

  4. At around 7am or 8am, there will be a fourth cloture vote on the motion to proceed with debate and amendments on the Wall Street bill.

  5. The freshman Senators will take the lead on all of this.  They are the driving force behind Senate Democrats recent, more aggressive use of procedure.
The leadership  is aiming both for more press coverage of Republicans blocking Wall Street reform, and that some Republican Senators, such as Voinovich (OH), will break and the cloture vote will pass tomorrow morning.  Voinovich has been making public noise about possible breaking ranks, and right now he seems to be the leadership's top target.

Once again, Senate Democrats are demonstrating their newfound willingness to aggressively employ unusual procedural tactics to achieve their political and policy ends.  they need to be congratulated for it.  The progressive activist base has, for years, called on Senate Democrats to make Republicans stay up all night talking, to make Republicans repeatedly vote against Democratic legislation, to pass as much legislation as possible under reconciliation, and to reform Senate rules.  Now, Senate Democrats are well on their way to doing all these things.  I say, well done.  More of this, please.

Chris Bowers :: Roll out the cots! Confirmation of, and details on, the Senate all-nighter

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Roll out the cots! Confirmation of, and details on, the Senate all-nighter | 19 comments
I don't understand how the R's could block a quorum (4.00 / 2)
quorum - The number of Senators that must be present for the Senate to do business. The Constitution requires a majority of Senators (51) for a quorum. Often, fewer Senators are actually present on the floor, but the Senate presumes that a quorum is present unless the contrary is shown by a roll call vote or quorum call.

http://www.senate.gov/referenc...
If they don't show up... (4.00 / 1)
then the dems can move things forward via unanimous consent...  At least one GOP member has to show up...

REID: Voting against us was never part of our arrangement!
SPECTER: I am altering the deal! Pray I don't alter it any further!
REID: This deal keeps getting worse all the time!
[ Parent ]
They can't (0.00 / 0)
but at least 51 Democrats would need to be on the floor. What the GOP will probably do is sent  a different Republican to the floor to object all night while all the Democrats stay on the floor.

if no Republican is on the floor when a Democrat ask for unanimous consent, it's granted.

A Republican, or Nelson, has to be on the floor at all times.  

[ Parent ]
Or Lieberman n/t (0.00 / 0)

[ Parent ]
... (0.00 / 0)
Didn't Lieberman vote to allow this to proceed?  The last vote I saw had 57 votes for.  Reid voted no for procedural reasons so he could bring it up again and Nelson voted no because he's a douche.    Since no GOPer voted yes, Joementum would have had to vote yes.
[ Parent ]
You're right - that's how it works (4.00 / 1)
All the GOP needs is a few Senators who are willing to take shifts so that one of them is on the floor at all times, to block unanimous consent.

So this 'hardball' is a form of self-inflicted misery for the Dems.

The only point I can see is PR: showing the world that while the GOP claims to want to debate whether the Wall Street regulation bill should be debated (!), they aren't even showing up to debate it.

Now if the Dems were going to hold a vote under Article I, Section 5 of the Constitution to exclude Motions to Proceed from bills that can be filibustered, I could see the payoff in that PR.  But as things stand, I can't.

[ Parent ]
PR (4.00 / 1)
There is a real reason why they haven't done this before.  The current rules don't really support it.

It still makes a dramatic point, though, and still worth the effort if you need to have the media shine a spotlight on the issue.  But it can only work if the Republicans are actually uncomfortable about their filibuster, which appears to be the case right now, or if the politics is worth it all on its own, like signaling to the base that the Dems are worth their vote.

[ Parent ]
Well (0.00 / 0)
The article claims the R's can prevent a quorum by not showing up.

Starting this afternoon, after the press confernece, Democrats will begin holding quorum calls to bring the Senate in order. Republicans could, in theory, not show up, and deny a quorum

which doesn't make any sense.

[ Parent ]
it's just a mistake (0.00 / 0)
51 (or 50 + Biden) is a quorum.
[ Parent ]
Good move (4.00 / 1)
I'd be ecstatic if the bill were any good (or if I thought it would be improved through amendments.)  
Cloture is based on (0.00 / 0)
60 votes for passage, not 60% of members present and voting, right?  There's no way they could actually pass something this way, is there?  Do the parli rules allow for things to proceed to the main motion if debate simply ends?  

Well, beyond Jim Bunning forgetting what side he's on after waking up from a dream.

Yes there is. (4.00 / 1)
A Senator can always make a motion and the chair can agree to it "without objection".  If a single Senator "objects", then comes in the "painless filibuster" that requires 60 votes to proceed.  However, if no one objects, the motion succeeds.

Our Dime Understanding the U.S. Budget
[ Parent ]
Can't the Majority Leader compel Senators to come for a vote? (0.00 / 0)
Including ordering the sergeant-at-arms to physically carry them into the chamber if necessary (as had happened with Bob Packwood in 1988)?

Also, where were these gutsy tactics during the health care fight?

... (0.00 / 0)
It wasn't close enough to the November Elections yet...
[ Parent ]
Funny, I thought conventional wisdom said less guts the closer we got to November (0.00 / 0)

[ Parent ]
... and the Republicans cave. (0.00 / 0)
That was surprisingly easy.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponlin...

Surprise (4.00 / 2)
Who would have thought that fighting for their goal instead of constantly reaching across the aisle would work?
[ Parent ]
Republicans can't prevent a quorum (0.00 / 0)
A quorum to do business is a simple majority of the body.  If 51 Democrats show up and no Republicans do, it's a quorum to do business.  Furthermore, if 51 Democrats show up and no Republicans do, the Dems can use unanimous consent to do anything.  Unanimous consent is commonly used to override a rule, for example, the rule that 60 votes are needed for cloture.

Republicans have no choice but to show up.

kabuki != procedural tactic (0.00 / 0)
Once again, Senate Democrats are demonstrating their newfound willingness to aggressively employ unusual procedural tactics to achieve their political and policy ends.

the kabuki is for us. this isn't a procedural tactic. it's theater.

Roll out the cots! Confirmation of, and details on, the Senate all-nighter | 19 comments
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