Cloture votes weaponized to handicap executive branch transition
The Senate has invoked cloture 108 times on executive nominees during the 18 months of the Trump presidency. By calling for cloture with the intent to obstruct progress, the Senate… Read More
Unring the bell
(Editor’s note: This post is a follow up to yesterday’s post and originally appeared in Legislative Procedure on September 5, 2018.) By James Wallner Yesterday’s post detailing… Read More
How to make the Senate a nuclear-free zone
(Editor’s note: This post originally appeared in Legislative Procedure on September 4, 2018.) Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., regrets going nuclear. Democrats used the controversial maneuver in 2013 to lower unilaterally the… Read More
ICYMI: Analysis on legislative gridlock and congressional oversight
The most recent edition of the The Legislative Scholar, the newsletter of the legislative studies section of the American Political Science Association, focuses on “the pervasive problem of… Read More
How diverse are Democratic Senate offices? You might be surprised …
Seemingly every year, journalists tweet pictures of House and Senate interns, offering photographic evidence that those interning in the branch of government most connected to the people don’t really look… Read More
Remembering Senator John McCain
(Editor’s note: This piece originally appeared in the First Branch Forecast on August 27, 2018.) McCain Senate office building? In his tweets commemorating the life of Sen. McCain, Sen. Read More
How to spot policy riders in appropriations bills
(Editor’s note: This piece originally appeared in Legislative Procedure on August 15, 2018.) By James Wallner Senate Rule XVI (paragraphs 1 and 2) prohibits the inclusion of… Read More
How effective are former governors as legislators in Congress?
(Editor’s note: This article originally appeared on the Hewlett Foundation website on August 8, 2018.) By Jean Parvin Bordewich Governors form a subset of senators with the unique… Read More
House rules should be available to public before vote
(Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the Legislative Procedure blog on August 8, 2018.) At the beginning of the 115th Congress, members of the House of Representatives… Read More
Losing isn’t required to play the game
By James Wallner The way in which the Senate considered the minibus appropriations bill (HR 6147) last week was a classic example of how its leaders (and bill managers)… Read More