Do votes in the Senate require scheduling and reasonable notification?Treaties are handled in Executive Session.
@ Rules of the Senate
@ XXX. EXECUTIVE SESSION - PROCEEDINGS ON TREATIES
1. (a) When a treaty shall be laid before the Senate for ratification, it shall be read a first time; and no motion in respect to it shall be in order, except to refer it to a committee, to print it in confidence for the use of the Senate, or to remove the injunction of secrecy.
(b) When a treaty is reported from a committee with or without amendment, it shall, unless the Senate unanimously otherwise directs, lie over one day for consideration; after which it may be read a second time, after which amendments may be proposed. At any stage of such proceedings the Senate may remove the injunction of secrecy from the treaty.
(c) The decisions thus made shall be reduced to the form of a resolution of ratification, with or without amendments, as the case may be, which shall be proposed on a subsequent day, unless, by unanimous consent, the Senate determine otherwise, at which stage no amendment to the treaty shall be received unless by unanimous consent; but the resolution of ratification when pending shall be open to amendment in the form of reservations, declarations, statements, or understandings.
(d) On the final question to advise and consent to the ratification in the form agreed to, the concurrence of two thirds of the Senators present shall be necessary to determine it in the affirmative; but all other motions and questions upon a treaty shall be decided by a majority vote, except a motion to postpone indefinitely, which shall be decided by a vote of two thirds. 2. Treaties transmitted by the President to the Senate for ratification shall be resumed at the second or any subsequent session of the same Congress at the stage in which they were left at the final adjournment of the session at which they were transmitted; but all proceedings on treaties shall terminate with the Congress, and they shall be resumed at the commencement of the next Congress as if no proceedings had previously been had thereon.
Regarding the injunction of secrecy see
Rule XXIX Executive Sessions 2. When acting upon confidential or Executive business, unless the same shall be considered in open Executive session, the Senate Chamber shall be cleared of all persons except the Secretary, the Assistant Secretary, the Principal Legislative Clerk, the Parliamentarian, the Executive Clerk, the Minute and Journal Clerk, the Sergeant at Arms, the Secretaries to the Majority and the Minority, and such other officers as the Presiding Officer shall think necessary; and all such officers shall be sworn to secrecy.
3. All confidential communications made by the President of the United States to the Senate shall be by the Senators and the officers of the Senate kept secret; and all treaties which may be laid before the Senate, and all remarks, votes, and proceedings thereon shall also be kept secret, until the Senate shall, by their resolution, take off the injunction of secrecy.
See also...The Executive Calendar
The Senate's Executive Calendar is updated each day the Senate is in session. The calendar identifies executive resolutions, treaties, and nominations reported out by Senate committee(s) and awaiting Senate floor action. The Executive Calendar is composed of eight sections described below. Treaties
This section identifies Treaties submitted by the President to the Senate for ratification, placed on the Executive Calendar with a sequentially assigned calendar number and ready for Senate floor consideration.
There is a link to the Calendar there and it is updated daily.
So yes, as I understand it, scheduling and reasonable notification is required. Simply calling for an Executive Session from the floor is a notification.
Someone has to be there to make sure the quorum call isn't rescinded.
I can't stress this enough...Congressional Record OCTOBER 18, 2000
Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Can you see the significance?
One more point...
Again we have to consider floor action. See above Congressional Record link and specifically page S10658.
Mr. THOMAS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to executive session to consider the following treaties on today’s Executive Calendar. They will consist of Nos. 20 through 53.
I further ask unanimous consent that the treaties be considered as having passed through their various parliamentary stages up to and including the presentation of the resolutions of ratification; all committee provisos, reservations, understandings, declarations be considered and agreed to; that any statements be printed in the CONGRESSIONAL RECORD as if read; further, that when the resolutions of ratification are voted upon, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, the President be notified of the Senate’s action, and that following the disposition of the treaties, the Senate return to legislative session.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. THOMAS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the clerk report each treaty by title prior to the vote on each treaty, and further I ask for a division vote on each resolution of ratification.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? Without objection, it is so ordered. The treaties will be considered to have passed through their various parliamentary stages up to and including the presentation of the resolutions of ratification, which the clerk will report.
Mr. Thomas used procedure to bypass the rules...as long as nobody objected, it was allowed.