Republicans go nuclear: An after action report
Republicans in the Senate finally acted to change the rules to speed up the confirmation process for some presidential nominations. They used the nuclear option to shorten the amount of… Read More
Three ways Republicans can go nuclear
Frustrated by how long it takes to confirm President Trump’s nominees, Republicans are accusing Democrats of dragging out unnecessarily the time permitted under the rules after the Senate has invoked… Read More
Republicans poised to nuke legislative filibuster
In 2017, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., pledged not to abolish the legislative filibuster. He did so to persuade his fellow Republicans to back his plan to use… Read More
Rule change empowers leaders to silence senators
Republicans in the Senate want to change the rules to speed up the confirmation process for presidential nominations. Yet their proposal goes much further. It empowers the majority and minority… Read More
The beginning of the end of the legislative filibuster? The unintended consequence of Blunt-Lankford rule change
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell set up debate this week to limit post-cloture time to two hours on judicial and executive branch nominees (except agency heads and Supreme Court nominations). But… Read More
New R Sheet: Post-cloture debate time for presidential nominations
Key Points: 1) Republicans can speed up the confirmation process by enforcing the Senate’s current rules and practices. 2) Strictly enforcing the provisions of Rule XXII limits the amount… Read More
The ‘World’s Greatest Deliberative Body’? Yeah, right.
It’s hard to imagine the Senate being any more dysfunctional than it already is. And yet here we are. Reports indicate that Republicans, frustrated by how long it takes to confirm… Read More
Precedents: What they are and how they are created
Senate Republicans are not yet convinced that they can amend a resolution to terminate a presidential declaration of a national emergency under the National Emergencies Act. While the… Read More
Why Pelosi doesn’t want to change the rules
A little-known procedural tool called the “motion to recommit” is suddenly all over the news. This is because House Republicans have successfully used the motion twice this year to force politically… Read More
Motions to Recommit: A brief history and reform options
Republicans in the House of Representatives are using a procedural motion to frustrate the chamber’s Democratic majority. To date, two Republican-sponsored motions to recommit have passed the chamber, even though… Read More