Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Background

Right now the Congress is considering the largest expansion of Federal power in the most recent 40 years. Congress is considering whether to pass America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009.

If passed, this law would greatly expand the power of the Federal government over health care access and the taxing of health care throughout the United States.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Background

This bill, or proposed law, is supported by President Obama and most of the Democrats in Congress.

Right now, Democrats hold the majority of seats in the House of Representatives and the Senate. This means Democrats can elect those who control the flow of bills through both houses of Congress.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Background

There are, however, some important exceptions. These are among the many rules and procedures in each house of Congress about how they run and move bills.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Background

These rules are not listed in the Constitution; they have been adopted as procedures to handle the business of Congress. Even though they are not in the Constitution, these rules are very, very important.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Background

Two of these procedures involve the Senate.

One is called a filibuster. Basically, a filibuster is a procedure where Senators stall a vote on a bill by talking it to death. Filibusters may go on for days and weeks. Any Senator or group of Senators may filibuster a bill and postpone a vote on it. During a filibuster, a Senator may discuss anything they like.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Background

During a filibuster the Senators who oppose the bill can control the floor, or voting priority, of the Senate and prevent a bill from coming for a vote.

There are basically two ways to stop a filibuster: the side that wants the vote to occur can remove the bill from consideration or they can call for an end to debate. The first one means they give up. The second one is called cloture.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Background

Cloture is basically a way for those who want to end the filibuster to tell those pushing the filibuster to shut up. It’s a very nasty tactic, and, until the last 30 years or so, it was rarely used. Now, it is used rather often.

The problem with calling for cloture is that it requires a supermajority – or the votes of 60 Senators – to pass.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Now

Until January 19, the Democratic Party held 59 seats in the Senate. One Senator, Joe Lieberman from Connecticut, who is an Independent, generally voted with the Democrats and he said he would on the health care bill as well. In other words, the Democratic majority could call for a cloture vote at any time and it would probably pass. This position in the Senate is called a supermajority.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Now

Well, last year, Edward Kennedy died. He had been the Senator from Massachusetts for many years. He was a Democrat. When he died, the Governor of Massachusetts appointed another Democrat to take his place until a special election to select a new Senator could be conducted.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Now

The special election was held yesterday. Most people expected Martha Coakley, the Democrat, to win the election. If that happened, the Democratic Party would hold their supermajority in the Senate.

However, Scott Brown, the Republican running for the Senate, won the election. This means that the Democratic Party no longer holds a supermajority in the Senate and cloture votes will probably not pass.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Now

Scott Brown has said that he will vote against the health care bill. It is safe to assume that position means he would uphold a filibuster against the bill.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Now

There are two other very important issues. One involves what is called coat tails. This is the idea that a President’s popularity can spill over into other political campaigns. So that a President can carry enhance other candidates’ campaigns by campaigning for them.

In the case of Massachusetts, President Obama campaigned for Martha Coakley.

Why the Massachusetts election is so important.

Now

Her loss makes many people question how popular President Obama is after one year in office.

The second big issue is the fact that this is Massachusetts. This is a state that has not elected a Republican to Congress for about 35 years. This makes many people question how popular some of the new Democratic ideas about government are.

A brief look at how a bill becomes law.

A bill is essentially an idea for a law.

Many people may work on a bill but only a member of Congress may introduce a bill to Congress. The President may not introduce a bill. Of course, if a President wants a bill to be introduced into Congress there will almost always be plenty of Congress members willing to do it.

There are many obstacles to a bill becoming law. The odds of a bill dying before it passes Congress are very high.

A brief look at how a bill becomes law.

There are certainly exceptions, but most bills follow the path I will illustrate here.

A brief look at how a bill becomes law.

Step #1

A bill is introduced to the House of Representatives. It is assigned a number and assigned to a committee for review.

Step #2

The committee to which the bill is assigned may refer the bill to a sub-committee, amend the bill, or kill the bill.

Step #3

If a bill survives committee, the committee makes a recommendation and the bill is sent back to the full House of Representatives and assigned a time for debate.

Step #4

During debate, members argue about and amend, or change, the bill.

Step #5

If the bill passes the House, it is referred to the Senate.

A brief look at how a bill becomes law.

Step #6

The Senate follows essentially the same procedures that the House did but the Senate deals with far fewer bills.

Step #7

If a bill survives committee it is sent back to the full Senate and assigned a time for debate.

Step #8

If a bill is passed by the Senate, the two versions of the bill, the one passed by the House and the one passed by the Senate, are sent to a conference committee to make revisions.

Step #9

The revised versions of the bill are re submitted to the House and the Senate for votes.

Step #10

If the bill passes in both the House and Senate, the bill is sent to the President for signing.

A brief look at how a bill becomes law.

Step #11 Option A – They sign the bill.

Outcome - The bill becomes law .

A President may do three or even four things with a bill.

Option B – They veto the bill.

Outcome - The bill is sent back to Congress. If 2/3 of Congress votes to override the veto, the bill becomes law anyway.

Option C – They ignore the bill

Outcome – If the President does not act on the bill within ten days – excluding Sundays – the bill becomes law.

Option C+ – They ignore the bill within 10 days of Congress’ adjourning

Outcome – If a bill reaches the President within less than 10 days of Congress’ adjourning and the President ignores it and it is vetoed.

A brief look at how a bill becomes law.

Step #1 Step #2

The committee to which the bill is assigned may refer the bill to a sub-committee, amend the bill, or kill the bill.

Step #3

If a bill survives committee it is sent back to the full House of Representatives and assigned a time for debate.