I've noticed a number of people complaining that the Democrats' majority in the Senate seems to be powerless, while the GOP, with a minority, rubberstamped everything Dubya asked for.

As Stephen Colbert explained it last night on the Colbert Report, it's because "Democrats are pussies."

There was a change in the Senate rules in 2005, but they aren't a serious problem. It all has to do with Senate Rule 22, which deals with filibuster and cloture. About a century ago, the Senate adopted rules requiring a 2/3 vote to cut off discussion. In 1975, they changed the rules to require only 60% of the Senate to invoke cloture, but at the same time, they made the filibuster "painless". That is, if 41 Senators assert that they intend to filibuster, they don't actually have to do the filibuster.

If you're of a certain age, you remember Mr. Smith going to Washington. Jimmy Stewart filibustered, standing there, reading all sorts of things into the Congressional Record for hours on end, until the other side relented a bit. Strom Thurmond pulled a real-life filibuster over the civil rights legislation, speaking nonstop for 24 hours, 18 minutes, with the aid of a catheter.

The old filibuster lasted only as long as a Senator could keep the floor, with the aid of a strong bladder (or an endless supply of catheter bags, I suppose.) I'm not sure how long a "painless filibuster" can last. However, it's fairly easy to break.

1. The Senate moves to vote on a controversial matter, such as the health care bill.
2. Forty-one senators announce an intention to filibuster.
3. Harry Reid raises a point of order, saying debate has gone on long enough and that a vote must be taken within a certain time frame.
4. Joe Biden, who is president of the Senate, sustains the point of order.
5. A GOP Senator appeals Joe Biden's decision, because he wants to continue discussion.
6. Another Senator, a Democrat, moves to table the motion on the floor (the appeal), because he wants cloture.
7. This vote to table the appeal is procedural. Procedural votes are not subject to discussion, so they cannot be filibustered, and a majority vote wins. (As always, a tie vote would be broken by Joe Biden as President of the Senate.)
8. With debate ended, the Senate could vote on the controversial bill; that is, the health care bill. The filibuster has effectively been closed with a majority vote instead of a 60% vote.

Last week, Chris Matthews had Representative Alan Grayson, who said the Senate could pass bills with a simple majority, and Chris basically said the Congressman was a fool who didn't know what he was talking about. As usual, Chris is bigger on bluster than he is on the facts. (I still wish he would run for the Senate from Pennsylvania, so I could vote against him. I'd even change my registration to Democratic so I could vote against him in the primary.)

It seems a shame that Comedy Central has become the only reliable source of news, with MSNBC and Faux News concentrating on stirring up antipathy between the party stalwarts, and CNN mostly reporting tinfoil brigade rants on Twitter.

Other Bloggers On Related Topics:
Chris Matthews - filibuster - Harry Reid - Jimmy Stewart - Joe Biden - Mr Smith Goes To Washington - Pennsylvania Senator - Senate Rule 22 - Stephen Colbert - Strom Thurmond