To help in the days ahead: Three different kinds of votes

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

Motion to Proceed. This means "Should the bill be considered by the Senate." Under current perverse Senate rules it takes 60 votes for the senate to even consider a bill. It is rare to pre-filibuster a bill by blocking it at the MtP stage but it happens.

Lieberman and Snowe will vote for the MtP. Nelson, Landrieu and Bayh have made noises about not even supporting the MtP.

Cloture. Cloture is easy to remember because it sounds like "closure" and that's what it is. Cloture ends amendments and debate, moving a bill to an actual up or down vote. Cloture requires 60 votes under current rules. Without 60 votes there is no limit to length of debate or number of amendments. Back in the day if you kept debate open forever somebody had to actually debate forever, with the process being tied to the stamina of folks blocking a bill. Unfortunately, at some point the Senate changed the rules to a "Let's not and say we did" thing where if you cannot get 60 for cloture the bill is dead without the need to debate until the end of time.

True fact: Both Senate cloak rooms have catheters so filibustering Senators can pee into a bag strapped to their leg. Nobody has to use them anymore but they are kept around (eeewwww) because the Senate loves tradition. (The stories Byrd could tell...)

Lieberman and Snowe say they will not vote for cloture on any PO-havin' bill. (Along with god knows who else.) Cloture is the main reason for the need to have 60 votes.

Vote on passage. The real vote on whether a bill passes or fails. Only requires 50 + Biden. The saner conservadems are expected to vote for cloture but vote against passage. The hope is that ALL the conservadems will vote for cloture. That's the stumbling block. We cannot lose ANY Dems on a cloture vote, or need to add pugs.

If a bill passes the Senate and a bill passes the House the two bills go to conference, a negotiation among representatives chosen by leadership.

The compromise bill that comes out of conference is taken up by the Senate and once again 60 votes are required to close debate. The conference bill cannot, however, be amended. If debate can be shut off the conference bill moves to a vote on passage and is once again 50 + Biden to pass.

[uponit7771]

1. TY

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

4. YW

[Clio the Leo]

2. Those catheters better have female attachments is all I can say!

Even if they are museum pieces, it's just the point of it all! :)

And thank you for this.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

3. I was thinking the same thing... fair is fair

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

5. ...