Washington – Cots for senators were carried in. Anti-war veterans planned to pack the Senate gallery after dark. And the leadership of the self-styled “world’s greatest deliberative body” gave legislators round-the-clock assignments so that the chamber would always be manned.
“I’m going to be presiding at 4 a.m.!” said freshman Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.
Democrats moved ahead Tuesday with the Senate’s first official all-nighter in four years, hoping that the publicity would make Republicans look extra bad for using their procedural powers to block a vote on an amendment forcing troop withdrawals from Iraq.
The amendment by Sens. Carl Levin, D-Mich., and Jack Reed, D-R.I., would begin withdrawing combat troops in four months, leaving others to fight terrorists and train Iraqis, and would likely win a majority in the 100-member Senate.
But with Democrats in charge by only 51-49 (counting independent Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, who opposes the amendment), and with only three Republicans co-sponsoring it, the measure lacks the 60-vote supermajority needed to overcome a Republican procedural hurdle permitted by Senate rules.
The hurdle is a filibuster – endless debate to block a vote, stoppable only by a 60-vote majority.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he was pulling the all-nighter “for the sake of our troops and the American people.”
“It will focus attention on the obstructionism of the Republicans,” Reid said.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., told reporters, “You’re going to be subjected to theater tonight – and bad theater at that.”
At least 13 Republicans have publicly criticized President Bush’s troop increase, and many more are growing impatient. But many Republicans said Democrats were crossing the line between debate and theatrics and dismissed the all-nighter as a cheap stunt.
Still, senators packed overnight bags – or at least fresh shirts and suits for the morning – and prepared for a long night.
Some embraced the spirit of debate. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, a senator for 30 years, admitted he had forced some all-nighters during his tenure. “This is where it really gets interesting and fun.”
Democrats threatened to hold “live quorum calls,” when the sergeant-at-arms could be instructed to force absent senators to the floor. That’s rare – although in 1988, then-Sen. Bob Packwood, R-Ore., was forcibly brought in.
As of early evening, it was unclear whether Democrats would resort to such steps.
