First time this has worked in some time--basically, the Dems just made the entire Republican leadership in the House moot, at least on this issue.
House Democrats quietly helped propel a GOP-led discharge petition to success, marking the first time in nearly a decade the maneuver has worked.
Why it matters: Democratic leaders made a concerted effort to get their members to sign on, according to several senior Democratic sources. It comes after several efforts to force votes on their own bills fell short.
Democrats said genuine support for the substance of the legislation drove their signatures – but they also see bypassing GOP leadership as an opportunity to flex their legislative muscle.
House Democrats quietly helped propel a GOP-led discharge petition to success, marking the first time in nearly a decade the maneuver has worked.
Why it matters: Democratic leaders made a concerted effort to get their members to sign on, according to several senior Democratic sources. It comes after several efforts to force votes on their own bills fell short.
- House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) urged her colleagues to sign the petition at a closed-door Democratic Caucus meeting on Wednesday, one of the sources said.
- It's the first time since 2015 that such a petition has gotten the 218 signatures needed to force a vote.
- The legislation was part of a broader, bipartisan tax package that passed the House in January but has stalled in the Senate.
- Around two dozen House Republicans signed onto the discharge petition, but the rest of the 218 signatures came from Democrats.
Democrats said genuine support for the substance of the legislation drove their signatures – but they also see bypassing GOP leadership as an opportunity to flex their legislative muscle.