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MsTinkerbelly · 12-17-2010, 11:08 AM

Sen. Reid schedules Saturday cloture vote on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal
By Adam Bink

Just this evening, Sen. Reid filed cloture on DADT repeal, paving the way for a Saturday vote.

The time period delay is because the cloture motions have to “ripen” or “mature” (one of the quirky parts of the Senate) for a few days until the vote can be taken. On Saturday, the Senate will vote first on the DREAM Act (on which Reid also filed cloture), and if it does not pass, will proceed immediately to a vote on DADT repeal. If the cloture vote, which requires 60 votes to pass, succeeds, then there will be 30 hours of debate until the final vote. The 30 hours can be waived if DADT repeal opponents agree to do so, but that remains to be seen.

Also, concerns that Sen. Wyden would miss the votes because of impending surgery are lessened, as he announced he would make both votes. There is a concern, though, that because Scott Brown said he would only support cloture if tax AND government spending legislation were enacted, and Reid just pulled the omnibus spending bill from the floor for lack of support, that Brown may not come through. However, Collins, Murkowski and Snowe haven’t (so far) made any such conditions, so we may still have 60 (and perhaps more, as Lieberman has hinted).

This is very good news, though, as he’s perhaps listened to Sen. Lieberman’s call today to put repeal ahead of the new START treaty. This is a wiser move on the merits.

So, stay tuned for a busy Saturday, and perhaps an early one for those of you on the West Coast. I’ll be up and Adam (rimshot!) blogging the coverage as usual.

Update: I should clarify that the above schedule assumes the DREAM vote will fail. If it passes, they go 30 hours of debate, have a final vote on the DREAM Act, then vote on cloture for DADT repeal, go 30 hours, vote. So, a vote on DADT repeal could come as early as Saturday depending on what happens with the DREAM Act, but it could also be Sunday.

Update 2: To answer another procedural question, the 30 hours encompasses time for consideration, not just debate. E.g., if they go into quorum call and everyone just mills about, that counts against the 30 hours. So do motions, parliamentary inquiries, etc. So don’t expect 30 hours of Senators talking non-stop with the clock stopping and starting.

Update 3: Another question on amendments. Under Senate Rule XXII, amendments have to be filed by 1 PM on the day following the filing of the cloture petition. E.g., 1 PM tomorrow. It appears that Reid filled the amendment tree has been filled so no hostile amendments at all (read: fun and games from Sen. McCain) will be allowed. You can motion to suspend Rule XXII and allow late amendments, etc., but that requires 67 votes to pass and is unlikely. So, it looks like we’ll be fine on the poison pill amendment front.

12-17-2010, 11:08 AM	#1016
MsTinkerbelly Timed Out - TOS Drama How Do You Identify?: ... Preferred Pronoun?: ... Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: ... Posts: 6,573 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 30,737 Thanked 22,958 Times in 5,020 Posts Rep Power: 0	FROM THE PROP 8 BLOG Sen. Reid schedules Saturday cloture vote on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal By Adam Bink Just this evening, Sen. Reid filed cloture on DADT repeal, paving the way for a Saturday vote. The time period delay is because the cloture motions have to “ripen” or “mature” (one of the quirky parts of the Senate) for a few days until the vote can be taken. On Saturday, the Senate will vote first on the DREAM Act (on which Reid also filed cloture), and if it does not pass, will proceed immediately to a vote on DADT repeal. If the cloture vote, which requires 60 votes to pass, succeeds, then there will be 30 hours of debate until the final vote. The 30 hours can be waived if DADT repeal opponents agree to do so, but that remains to be seen. Also, concerns that Sen. Wyden would miss the votes because of impending surgery are lessened, as he announced he would make both votes. There is a concern, though, that because Scott Brown said he would only support cloture if tax AND government spending legislation were enacted, and Reid just pulled the omnibus spending bill from the floor for lack of support, that Brown may not come through. However, Collins, Murkowski and Snowe haven’t (so far) made any such conditions, so we may still have 60 (and perhaps more, as Lieberman has hinted). This is very good news, though, as he’s perhaps listened to Sen. Lieberman’s call today to put repeal ahead of the new START treaty. This is a wiser move on the merits. So, stay tuned for a busy Saturday, and perhaps an early one for those of you on the West Coast. I’ll be up and Adam (rimshot!) blogging the coverage as usual. Update: I should clarify that the above schedule assumes the DREAM vote will fail. If it passes, they go 30 hours of debate, have a final vote on the DREAM Act, then vote on cloture for DADT repeal, go 30 hours, vote. So, a vote on DADT repeal could come as early as Saturday depending on what happens with the DREAM Act, but it could also be Sunday. Update 2: To answer another procedural question, the 30 hours encompasses time for consideration, not just debate. E.g., if they go into quorum call and everyone just mills about, that counts against the 30 hours. So do motions, parliamentary inquiries, etc. So don’t expect 30 hours of Senators talking non-stop with the clock stopping and starting. Update 3: Another question on amendments. Under Senate Rule XXII, amendments have to be filed by 1 PM on the day following the filing of the cloture petition. E.g., 1 PM tomorrow. It appears that Reid filled the amendment tree has been filled so no hostile amendments at all (read: fun and games from Sen. McCain) will be allowed. You can motion to suspend Rule XXII and allow late amendments, etc., but that requires 67 votes to pass and is unlikely. So, it looks like we’ll be fine on the poison pill amendment front.