SR 107-26: Senate Modernization Rules Package (Passed)

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Aye on the amendment.

Might I suggest a further amendment to prevent use of the words/phrases "partisan", "Senate rules", and "corruption" by Senator West_Midlander, which will provide this hallowed body with a modicum of peace and smooth operation.

Arguably, this chamber could stand to be less peaceful, certainly compared to recent weeks. I do find it amazing how the priority leaps majestically from the desperation for activity, to shutting it down, as happened back on the last rules kerfuffle.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

If this legislation is so pressing why are there two open slots for general legislation right now? Why did this legislation come to the floor before any of my bills when the Senate rules state that the queue should be followed so long as the sponsor has <2 bills on the floor and I am only sponsoring one of Spark's bills that is one the floor now?

The PPT's bill was introduced today and my bills have been submitted for days.

I am in the process of putting your bills on the floor.

Why did this legislation come to the floor immediately when it is last in the queue?

It would be severely counterproductive to wait days and weeks to put on the floor a resolution to increase the number of bills that can be on the floor, no? In order to maximize productiveness and efficiency in this new Congress, I believe it’s essential that these reforms are debated and voted upon as soon as possible.

While you are allowed to bring legislation to the floor out of order, generally only emergency stuff has been treated this way, and regardless such an action ought to be (and has always been) accompanied by a public post explaining why it's brought to the floor immediately – in principle it's to keep the entire Senate apprised of the situation. Doing it without that explanation, or even an explanation after the fact, is pretty bad form regardless of how much of an emergency it is.

I hope that answers Westy's question. Aye on the amendment.

The only jumping around should be for the sake of emergencies or to respect the clogging rule limitations.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Abstain


While I would tend to defer to the PPT's judgment on appropriate number of slots, I do have some reservations about the practicalities of administering this many and the Senate keeping up with this many. It is a tradeoff and at some point you reach its limits in a diminishing utility sense.

I had envisioned around this number back with Scott last summer, but that was with three chamber administrators, splitting 18 in order slots three ways and the VP having the administration/emergency slots.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Aye