Posted on 12/21/2018 10:48:16 AM PST by Jim Robinson
LIVE on the Senate floor: Senators debate the short-term funding bill passed by the House last night. If the bill fails, it will trigger a government shutdown just before the Christmas holiday.
Filibusters were exceedingly rare before 1970, due to their being so painful, requiring Senators to actually keep speaking 24x7 with every other Senator required to endure this physically demanding marathon, with no other Senate business able to be done in the meantime.
But in 1970, Sen Majority Leader Mike Mansfield changed the rules to allow "virtual filibusters" that didn't require anything more strenuous than a minority declaring a Filibuster Lite against some bill. At that point, the filibuster was declared to have taken place with the minority's stamina having overcome the majority's stamina, and the bill was now dead. So it was all over in a few seconds instead of days or weeks. Ie a complete wimp-out. And the frequency of filibusters exploded from approx 1 per year, to close to once per week.
McConnell has the right to undo what his predecessor arbitrarily did 48 years ago, and restore the original filibuster. Let this endurance test commence. What better place for Senators - both Dem & GOP - to spend the next few weeks at Christmas & New Years, than at their desks , 1000s/100s of miles fron their families, having the Greater Washington DC White Pages Phonebook being read to them in its entirety yet again, by a 'Rat Senator.
Perhaps McConnell, after enough days, can announce that the Democrats must choose between either a REAL Filibuster, or else the Nuke Option.
“I think they’re basically immune for anything they do or say in their official capacity.”
Legally immune. Not immune when the present war goes hot.
There is one and only one reason any legislator is currently refusing to fund the wall: they do not want our borders to be secure. It’s that simple.
Every Washington politician who now refuses to fund the wall deserves his or her head on a pole.
The media is going to endlessly replay that clip of Trump telling Pelosi and Schumer that he will be proud to own the shutdown.
You’ll never see it from the media and legitimate polling rarely if ever happens....
Clearly they won’t be able to stop the filibuster. What is important is that the vote come out a majority, which means we need every republican to vote.
If the vote is not “yes”, then the democrats can say that it is the republican’s fault for putting up a bill that could not even pass.
If there are 50 votes to proceed, then it is clear that only thing shutting down the government is the democrat’s insistance on a SPECIFIC item being taken out of spending, an item that a majority of the people want, and that is entirely non-controversial, to the point where their own argument is that “it is too much money”, not “this wall thing is crazy, we should not have any walls at all”.
Looks like we’ll be waiting a while, since the senators are not actually here yet.
“... they do not want our borders to be secure...”
That and also they do not want to see a President Trump win no matter how much it hurts the country and the American people...
Typical Senate is out to lunch.
They’ll vote no in their own sweet time.
of course, Jeff Flake voted no, not because he opposes a wall, or has any particular concern about spending, but because he really really hates Donald Trump.
And unfortunately he apparently didn’t see the need to leave the capital, so he is here to vote.
But if we get all the other republicans, we’ll have 50 votes, which would win passage with the VP breaking a tie; being a filibuster vote, there is no “tie” to break.
of course, Jeff Flake voted no, not because he opposes a wall, or has any particular concern about spending, but because he really really hates Donald Trump.
And unfortunately he apparently didn’t see the need to leave the capital, so he is here to vote.
But if we get all the other republicans, we’ll have 50 votes, which would win passage with the VP breaking a tie; being a filibuster vote, there is no “tie” to break.
I’ve been watching the “live” broadcast for 45 minutes now and haven’t seen more than a dozen people at any one time...Those there are just standing around shooting the bull anyway...
Corker and Heller will join Flake in "grudge" voting to stop Trump and Lord knows what is going on with Hatch.
A no vote for cloture is a vote against border security.
Hold them all accountable.
The question is ...which body will capitulate to the other.
Or who ends up with the Gov. shutdown on their plate.
Thank you for you help with this curiosity...
That’s the understanding from what I understand also boss, but then how are they able to do this to a President? Who should also be “immune for what they say or do in their official capacity”. I am curious if in true legalities this might just be a rumor and a common accepted myth?
They took an oath to be elected, would it not be misrepresentation and fraud to break this oath? Many states do not have recall legalities. We do here in Az if they volunteer to sign the agreement when they run as a candidate. But it is impossible to actually get this done because of the crony money. We tried...
There has got to be some type of civil legal repercussions if you elect a Republican and they commit fraud and treason after they get there and misrepresent the people who elected them. He deserves to have his “Walmart Greeter” check attached for the rest of his life. :)
Right because there is no nuclear option being applied to legislation which needs 60 votes. Ain’t gonna happen.
The bill is dead even if VP Pence votes to break a tie.
The budget battle raises the ante. Now the major focus will be on the budget and immigration/sovereignty.
It could actually push impeachment off the table. Using the budget battle as a justification for impeachment would be very risky for the Dems. Even if they have the biased Mueller report as a pretext for impeachment, an ongoing show-down over immigration would overshadow Mueller’s report.
I think Trump will just have to use military funds to build the wall. I think that’s partially why he is pulling out of Syria and reducing troops in Afghanistan.
What suit against the President are you referring to?
..........”The media is going to endlessly replay that clip of Trump telling Pelosi and Schumer that he will be proud to own the shutdown”...........
And Trump should continue to stand in it’s wake for putting US Security as “first” above Dems political games and drama.
I would consider that Justice.
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