***** Official LiveBlog = Senate Filibuster Rule Debate *****

[L. Coyote]

The Senate is live NOW:

http://cspan.org/Live-Video/C-SPAN2/

[pinto]

1. Just getting back on line. Thanks for the heads-up. I'm really interested to see how this goes.

:thumbsup:

[L. Coyote]

2. Reid didn't block anything. The first legislative day is being extended for weeks

Reid didn't block anything. The first legislative day is being extended for weeks (like it has been

during filibuster reform pushes in the 70s) so that they can develop support for a rules package. This is what Merkley wanted.

See the post on this forum:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x120498

This may not be the end of the issue and certainly is not the end of the debate, hence this thread.

Please link other threads/news here.

[FreakinDJ]

3. Delegates voting rights : motion to table

I imagine so - Right down the party lines

[PoliticAverse]

4. it's amusing how "Mr. Smith comes to Washington" keeps getting mentioned. n/t

[The Wielding Truth]

5. It's the abuse of the filibuster by Republicans that makes this change necessary.

[NYC Liberal]

7. Weren't the Republicans calling the filibuster 'unconstitutional'

any time the Dems even hinted at using it when they were in the minority?

[The Wielding Truth]

30. Yea even when the Dem's would think of using it correctly they were blasted.

[tishaLA]

6. Lamar Alexander is Mr Disingenuous

And he's boring to boot. I think he needs to go back to the red plaid shirts.

[Kalyke]

15. As a Tennesseean, I say that I think he needs to just go away.

:)

[L. Coyote]

8. Coming up: More rules motions.

[L. Coyote]

9. WA POST: Harry Reid sure sounds serious about filibuster reform

Harry Reid sure sounds serious about filibuster reform
By Greg Sargent
Posted at 2:27 PM ET, 01/ 5/2011


There's been a lot of speculation of late that Harry Reid -- under attack from Republicans -- may flinch from supporting the filibuster reform package that Senate Dem reformers have just unveiled. But in remarks on the Senate floor moments ago, he did sound pretty serious about making real reform a reality.

I've also got some new intel from Senate aides on how Reid views the path forward -- in particular, they say Reid still reserves the right to pass these reforms by simple majority. But first, Reid's remarks on the floor:

"In the entire 19th century, the Senate saw fewer than, 12, a dozen filibusters. Now we see that many in a single month...Rather than offer amendments to improve legislation or compromise for the greater good -- as members of this body have done for generations -- the current minority has offered amendments simply to waste time, to delay us from proceeding to a bill or to score political points. The American people love government but they don't like too much politics in government."

......

[PoliticAverse]

10. I believe that "secret holds" are likely going away.

But I don't think that "Mr. Smith comes to Washington" style filibusters
are necessarily coming back.

[L. Coyote]

11. Harry Reid Opens the Senate's New Session = Prepared Text

Harry Reid Opens the Senate's New Session
http://www.nationaljournal.com/congress/harry-reid-opens-the-senate-s-new-session-20110105?page=1
Wednesday, January 5, 2011 | 2:04 p.m.

The following is the prepared text of the opening remarks of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., as provided by his office.



Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid

Remarks Opening 112th Congress

As Prepared for Delivery Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Mr. President, happy new year, and happy new year to all my colleagues --those returning to the Senate and those taking office today for the first time.

I am honored, humbled and will forever be grateful that the people of Nevada have entrusted me with another term as their Senator. I will continue working hard to create jobs for the people of my state and get our economy back on track.

I am also grateful for the continued support and confidence of my caucus, which has again given me the honor of serving as its Leader. Neither title -- Senator and Majority Leader -- is a responsibility I take lightly, or for granted.

They say you can never step in the same river twice. New water flows in, replacing the old and continually renewing the river. The Senate is the same.

................. http://www.nationaljournal.com/congress/harry-reid-opens-the-senate-s-new-session-20110105?page=1

[L. Coyote]

12. BLOOMBERG: Democrats Push Filibuster Change, Fix ‘Broken’ Senate

Democrats Push Filibuster Change, Fix ‘Broken’ Senate
By Laura Litvan and Brian Faler - Jan 5, 2011 10:54 AM PT
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-05/democrats-push-to-limit-senators-power-to-prolong-debate-with-filibuster.html


Senator Jeff Merkley, seen here, said, “You shouldn’t filibuster casually” by being able, as currently allowed, to invoke the tactic “and go to dinner or go on vacation.” Photographer: Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images

Senate Democrats will push as one of their first acts in the new Congress a bid to undercut one of the chamber’s most ingrained rules: the filibuster.

The effort that begins today is fueled by Republicans’ growing use of the filibuster -- the refusal to end debate -- to block legislation since Democrats took control of the Senate in 2007.

“The Senate is broken,” said Senator Jeff Merkley, an Oregon Democrat who proposes that lawmakers be on the floor debating throughout the time they are relying on filibusters to derail measures. “You shouldn’t filibuster casually” by being able, as currently allowed, to invoke the tactic “and go to dinner or go on vacation,” he said.

The proposal by Merkley and Senator Tom Udall, a New Mexico Democrat, would require what they call “talking filibusters.” They also would limit the use of a filibuster to blocking a final vote on a measure. Currently, senators can threaten the tactic to stop any debate on a bill, as well as a final vote.

Role Reversal

The Democratic push represents a role reversal for the party. Democrats in 2005 threatened to shut down the Senate when Republicans, who then controlled the chamber, proposed curbing the use of filibusters to thwart judicial nominations. ..........

[L. Coyote]

13. Sen. Udall making his motion NOW. Objection heard. Resolution introduced to reform rules.

Historic moment!

[L. Coyote]

14. Did Harkin make the motion?

A Senator said earlier, "If anyone is watching this"

Is anyone watching this?

[tishaLA]

16. Oh FFS. Now Grassley rambling.

And giving his "bipartisan" bona fides. Yeah. Like with health care reform.

[L. Coyote]

17. My Senator, Jeff Merkley, has a great chart showing the rise cloture rule filings

68 rate in last session.

[L. Coyote]

18. Good point. Cloture abuse intervenes with the Constitution.

[Nuclear Unicorn]

19. We will be one bought & paid for election away from regretting this day

just sayin'

[LLStarks]

20. We have Grassley's vote? nt

[PoliticAverse]

21. Against secret holds, yes...

http://www.capitolnewsconnection.org/news/sen-grassley%E2%80%99s-war-against-%E2%80%98secret-holds%E2%80%99

[L. Coyote]

22. Secret hold abuse, "Give me my earmarks or I'll secretly hold something else!"

[L. Coyote]

23. Secret holds are the "lobbyist's jackpot" = Sen. Ron Wyden

[LLStarks]

24. Will there be a separate vote for secret holds? nt

[PoliticAverse]

35. They will be negotiating over the next 2 weeks or so...

To come up with a proposal (or proposals) that have 51 votes.

[L. Coyote]

25. Sen. Harkin, "isn't a filibuster a tool for gridlock?"

[Tx4obama]

26. Here's a link that includes the text of the resolution

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/05/senate-democrats-rules-reform-filibuster-intact_n_804747.html

[L. Coyote]

28. Keep Filibuster But Make It Old School

For those who argue that the filibuster should be ended entirely, or at least reduced from its 60-vote threshold, the package falls short. Democratic lawmakers had been debating making alterations to that provision for months now, but during negotiations with leadership their vision was pared back.

Members were reportedly concerned about the vote count. On Wednesday morning, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) proclaimed that the "last thing" the Senate needed to do "is start changing rules, with 51 votes and simple majority, and make the Senate a smaller version of the House."

Mainly, however, there was worry throughout the party that they could end up in the minority in the near future.

"I'm not in favor of getting rid of the filibuster," former Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean said on Wednesday morning during a breakfast organized by the Christian Science Monitor. "I do think there is an argument to be made for minority party having some say. The filibuster has been so badly abused though. And it gets abused cyclically that is the Democrats abused it, the Republicans were worse, Democrats came back and we were worse then they were. Now they are even worse."

Dean argued in favor of abolishing secret holds, and for some reform of the filibuster.

[Tx4obama]

27. Merkley explains why January 5th AND January 24th are both the 'first day' of the session

The Rachel Maddow Show 01/03/11 - GOP abuse of filibuster prompts reform - Senator Merkley
Towards the beginning of the interview Senator Merkley explains why/how The 112th Congress starts January 5th and that January 24th will still be considered 'the first day' of the session.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x540184

[L. Coyote]

29. Sen. Whitehouse "a drooning, tedious quorum call" is the modern filibuster "chamber useless"

"filibuster by party" "to provoke the majority leader to file for cloture"

"when cloture is filed there is 30 hours mandatory for debate"

"The majority actually filibusters bills they support" "about forcing cloture and forcing those 30 hour ... to be burned up"

"all it takes is one person waiting in the cloakroom for that 30 hour period to run"

"you impede this institution" from "getting its work done"

[L. Coyote]

31. REPLAY NOW: My Senator Merkley is showing his chart.

[Tx4obama]

32. Thanks for the heads up!

http://cspan.org/Live-Video/C-SPAN2/

[Tx4obama]

33. Here's a summary I found earlier today

Udall-Harkin-Merkley Rules Reform Package

Blocking a vote with a filibuster used to be rare and reserved for extreme situations. Today, major bills, non-controversial bills, sometimes multiple steps on the same piece of legislation, and even non-controversial nominees face filibusters. There have been more filibusters since 2006 than the total between 1920 and 1980.

Senate rules are supposed to allow for substantive debate and to protect the views of the minority – as our founders intended. Instead, they are abused to prevent the Senate from ever voting on, and sometimes even debating, critical legislation.

Our reform resolution helps increase transparency, restores accountability, and fosters debate.

• Clear Path to Debate: Eliminate the Filibuster on Motions to Proceed

Makes motions to proceed not subject to a filibuster, but provides for two hours of debate. This proposal has had bipartisan support for decades and is often mentioned as a way to end the abuse of holds.

• Eliminates Secret Holds

Prohibits one Senator from objecting on behalf of another, unless he or she discloses the name of the senator with the objection. This is a simple solution to address a longstanding problem.

• Right to Amend: Guarantees Consideration of Amendments for both Majority and Minority

Protects the rights of the minority to offer amendments following cloture filing, provided the amendments are germane and have been filed in a timely manner.

This provision addresses comments of Republicans at last year’s Rules Committee hearings. Each time Democrats raised concerns about filibusters on motions to proceed, Republicans responded that it was their only recourse because the Majority Leader fills the amendment tree and prevents them from offering amendments. Our resolution provides a simple solution – it guarantees the minority the right to offer germane amendments.

• Talking Filibuster: Ensures Real Debate

Following a failed cloture vote, Senators opposed to proceeding to final passage will be required to continue debate as long as the subject of the cloture vote or an amendment, motion, point of order, or other related matter is the pending business.

• Expedite Nominations: Reduce Post-Cloture Time

Provides for two hours of post-cloture debate time for nominees.

Post cloture time is meant for debating and voting on amendments – something that is not possible on nominations. Instead, the minority now requires the Senate use this time simply to prevent it from moving on to other business.

[Tx4obama]

34. Go get 'em Senator McCaskill :)

[L. Coyote]

36. FROM: Sandy Newman, President Voices for Progress

The Senate will now take a recess and reconvene on January 24th or 25th to take a vote on the legislation. The delay is not a problem, so long as the Senate does not proceed to take up regular business under the old rules (thereby ratifying them) before it votes on this issue. It is likely that another proposal, being developed by Sen. Chuck Schumer, will still be introduced before then. We don't yet know to what extent that proposal will incorporate the reforms that Merkley, Harkin and Tom Udall have proposed. We do know that the vote on reforms that will take place during the week of January 24th will be very close, since if just four Democrats defected on the issue, we would lose. So we'll have our work cut out for us to get all Democrats to commit to support the proposal.

If you'd like, we'll be glad to get you a target list on Friday so that your members can put in calls or emails to any of the target Senators with whom they have connections.

Best,

Sandy

Sandy Newman, President
Voices for Progress

[L. Coyote]

37. Here is the link to a summary of the package on Senator Merkley's website.

http://merkley.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/?id=9D8813DF-95C1-4721-8A54-F44A6180A4A9

Udall, Harkin, Merkley Introduce Rules Reform Package to Restore Accountability to Senate
"Proposals to Reform Filibuster Rule, Eliminate Secret Holds to be Weighed Over Coming Weeks"
January 5, 2011


WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Tom Udall (NM), Tom Harkin (IA) and Jeff Merkley (OR) today introduced a resolution to reform the Senate rules that includes a package of provisions designed to increase transparency, restore accountability and foster debate in an institution where obstruction and dysfunction have pushed aside progress for the American people.

Currently, the resolution is co-sponsored by the following senators: Dick Durbin (IL), Amy Klobuchar (MN), Sherrod Brown (OH), Mark Begich (AK), Richard Blumenthal (CT), Kirsten Gillibrand (NY), Jeanne Shaheen (NH), Barbara Boxer (CA), Benjamin L. Cardin (MD), Joe Manchin (WV), Barbara Mikulski (MD), Jay Rockefeller (WV), and Jon Tester (MT).

The resolution comes after years of unprecedented obstruction and a historic rise in the use of the filibuster. Since 2006, there have been more filibusters than the total between 1920 and 1980. As a result of this dysfunction, in the last Congress the Senate was unable to pass a single appropriations or budget bill, left more than 400 bills sent over by the House unconsidered, and left key executive appointments and judicial nominations to languish.

“Here in the Senate, open, honest debate has been replaced with secret backroom deals and partisan gridlock. Up-or-down votes, and sometimes even debate, on important issues have been unreasonably delayed or blocked entirely at the whim of a single senator,” Udall said. “The American people are fed up with it. They are fed up with us. And I don’t blame them. We need to bring the workings of the Senate out of the shadows and restore its accountability. Over the next two weeks the American people will have the opportunity to add their voices to the call for reform and I encourage them to speak loudly.”

"This reform effort is about one thing: ensuring the Senate can operate more fairly, effectively and democratically to meet the challenges of our time," Harkin said. "When I first moved toward a reform effort in 1995, I saw an escalating arms race, where each side ratcheted up the use of the filibuster. The sad reality is that, today, because of the indiscriminate use of the filibuster, the ability of our government to legislate and to address problems is severely jeopardized. Sixteen years after I first introduced my proposal, it is even more apparent that for our government to properly function, we must reform and curb the use of the filibuster."

"The clear and undeniable fact is that the Senate is broken. Thoughtful deliberation does not occur and far too much gets lost in a tangle of obstruction and delay. Our proposal will help restore the Senate to what the American people believe it ought to be - an institution that respects both minority and majority rights and allows fair consideration, debate and decisions on legislation and nominations," Merkley said.

The rules reform package includes five provisions that would do the following:

* Eliminate the Filibuster on Motions to Proceed: Makes motions to proceed not subject to a filibuster, but provides for two hours of debate. This proposal has had bipartisan support for decades and is often mentioned as a way to end the abuse of holds.

* Eliminate Secret Holds: Prohibits one senator from objecting on behalf of another, unless he or she discloses the name of the senator with the objection. This is a simple solution to address a longstanding problem.

* Guarantee Consideration of Amendments for both Majority and Minority: Protects the rights of the minority to offer amendments following cloture filing, provided the amendments are germane and have been filed in a timely manner.

* Talking Filibuster: Ensures real debate following a failed cloture vote. Senators opposed to proceeding to final passage will be required to continue debate as long as the subject of the cloture vote or an amendment, motion, point of order, or other related matter is the pending business.

* Expedite Nominations: Provide for two hours of post-cloture debate time for nominees. Post cloture time is meant for debating and voting on amendments – something that is not possible on nominations. Instead, the minority now requires the Senate use this time simply to prevent it from moving on to other business.

[L. Coyote]

38. Where the campaign to reform the filibuster stands: * On December 22nd, all 53 Senate Democrats

Where the campaign to reform the filibuster stands:

* On December 22nd, all 53 Senate Democrats signed a letter in support of reform. <1> If they use the Constitutional Option, only 50 are needed.

* On Wednesday, Senate Democrats introduced a package of reforms that would make the filibuster real, and dramatically speed up the nomination process. <2>

* Yesterday, Harry Reid vowed that Senate Democrats would enact filibuster reform with or without Republican support. <3>

* On January 24th, the first legislative day of the new Congress ends. Our campaign to reform the rules of the Senate will either succeed or fail on that day.

Our job now is to get 50 Senate Democrats in support of using the Constitutional Option to enact the proposed reforms on January 24th. The first step we are going to take to do this is to write letters to the editor of our local newspapers in support of filibuster reform. You can easily write such a letter by using a handy tool created by the Fix the Senate coalition:

Write a letter to your local newspaper supporting filibuster reform.

All Senate offices monitor the letters in the editorial page of their local newspapers to gauge support for their actions. If we can dominate these editorial pages for the next 17 days, it will go a long way toward keeping up the momentum for reform. This is true no matter whether your Senators favor, oppose, or are undecided about rules reform.

Write a letter to your local newspaper supporting filibuster reform.

At every step of this campaign, your actions played a crucial role.

* When you raised money to help David Waldman form a coalition to meet with every Democratic Senator and get them on record supporting reform, it worked.

* When you signed petitions to make the filibuster a real filibuster, that proposal was included in the package of reforms.

* When you called the office of lead Democratic negotiator on rules reform, Senator Charles Schumer, and asked him to threaten to enact rules reform with or without Republican support, both he and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid did just that.

You are making this campaign succeed, but the fight isn’t over yet. We have 17 days to get 50 Senators in support of using The Constitutional Option to enact real filibuster reform. To help make that happen, write a letter to your local newspaper supporting filibuster reform now.

Keep fighting,
Chris Bowers
Campaign Director, Daily Kos