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According to the headlines, last week Majority Leader Chuck Schumer forced the Senate to vote on a potential change to the Senate filibuster. In actuality, Schumer did something very different. What was nominally aimed at reforming the filibuster was actually an attempt to limit all senators’ rights under the rules
Debt ceiling politics is front and center in Congress as the US is scheduled to default on its accrued debt October 18. (For a good explainer on the debt ceiling I recommend my colleague Laura Blessing’s piece.) So far, Senate Republicans have filibustered Democrats’ attempts to raise the debt ceiling.
On August 24th, the House adopted S.Con.Res.14, the congressional budget resolution for Fiscal Year 2022 previously adopted by the Senate on August 11th, setting up consideration of a $3.5T package of spending under the reconciliation process. The budget resolution was adopted 220-212 in the House and 50-49 in the Senate,
News dropped Monday the Senate Parliamentarian would allow Democrats to “revise” the budget resolution for fiscal year 2021. This is an important guidance because it would enable Democrats to pursue another round of reconciliation – a process outlined in the 1974 Budget and Impoundment Control Act allowing for Senate passage
In response to the global coronavirus pandemic, three major bills were passed by Congress and signed into law by President Trump in March. On March 6, the president signed into law H.R.6074, an $8.3 billion supplemental appropriations bill, mostly aimed at providing additional funding for the Department of Health and
Amid a growing pandemic where social interaction could threaten health, many questions have been raised about the continuity of operations on Capitol Hill. Not for the first time, remote voting is among the ideas being floated. It has been more frequently mentioned in congressional discourse since smartphones became commonplace. Over
Anyone who watched School House Rock knows how bills become law. From a numbers standpoint, it is straightforward. It needs 218 votes in the House, 51 votes in the Senate (60 to cut off a filibuster), and a presidential signature. Given this math, some wonder why Speaker Pelosi is hesitating
Procedurally, the House and Senate could not be more different. The House is subject to absolute majority rule. Conversely, the Senate is governed by more bipartisan processes like unlimited debate, supermajority cloture, and unanimous consent. However, the two chambers have become more similar in recent years. Partisan House members moving
After a moment of pomp and circumstance to accompany the swearing-in of the new Congress, the 116th Congress quickly pivoted to the less glamorous work of legislating. The most immediate concern for Democrats, who now control the House of Representatives, is to end a partial government shutdown that has dragged
Now that erstwhile Secretary of Veterans Affairs nominee Dr. Ronny Jackson has lost his job as the President’s personal physician, he should blame former Sen. Harry Reid for his troubles. On November 21, 2013, in the face of sustained Republican opposition to confirming President Obama’s nominees and judges, the Senate
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