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Don Wolfensberger wrote a nice piece on the parallels between Majority Leader Reid’s nuclear option and Speaker Reed’s ruling in 1890 that eliminated dilatory motions in the House. Both are good examples of rules changes through precedent. The two were so similar it was the first example that came to
Since Democrats invoked the nuclear option, reducing cloture on judicial and executive nominations, there are serious concerns that those actions would result in fallout. Would the Republican minority, in retaliation to losing significant leverage in the nominations process, attempt to drag out every nomination and/or bill? So far, that can’t
Enormous change to the Senate occurred today. By majority vote, the Senate moved to proceed on judicial and executive nominations, with the exception of Supreme Court nominations. What you need to know: The parliamentary tactic used in the Senate was not a rules change. It was a change in precedent
Senior Fellow Marian Currinder spoke to the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) this morning on the political dynamics of Congress. The question at hand was why Congress is the way it is, and why it matters. It’s no secret that the current Congress is unpopular, with an
As the House prepares to vote for another CR/debt deal without a majority of Republicans, some wonder whether this is the end of the line for Speaker Boehner. However, given the dynamics in the House, a mid-session overthrow is very unlikely, though not impossible. For one, a speaker has never
This morning on WTOP’s morning program Rep. Andy Harris (MD-1) blamed the government shutdown on Democrats’ refusal to remove the “gold-plated” health care benefit from the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). That’s the provision that allows the government to chip in for Members and their staff’s health benefits. Interestingly, fellow Republican
By Marian Currinder and Joshua Huder The federal government has shut down for the first time since 1996 and all eyes are focused on House Speaker John Boehner. Will he continue to insist upon tying a repeal or delay of Obamacare to a funding bill? Or will he bring the
If Speaker Boehner allows the House to vote on a “clean” continuing resolution with the idea of allowing it to pass with a majority of Democratic votes, can he be removed as Speaker in the 113th Congress? As of this writing it appears that a government shutdown is inevitable. The
As I mused in my last post, one argument in Congress is not ONLY should Congressional staff receive a subsidy as they are moved out of FEHBP and into the Exchange, it has also become who else should be moved without an employer match. According to a recent Robert Wood
The Senate’s procedural and strategic contexts may create an interesting irony for some Republicans this week. The Senate’s conservative Republicans may filibuster their own bill. If this seems like procedural cannibalism, it’s likely not. However, if they are successful, it may be unintended tactical cannibalism. Democratic Leader Harry Reid has
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