Trajan
conscientia mille testes
I have a question for the Senate rules expert. Does a senator have to be present in the chamber to vote, or could Kennedy vote from his sick bed? If he had to be present and since Kennedy was mostly too sick to be present, then the Dems only had enough votes "present" to end cloture when Kirk was sworn in on Sept 25, 2009. So that would be as a practical matter only about 4 months of a filibuster proof senate.Wrong AGAIN. Arlen gave them 59 votes. From Huffpo report 4/28/09:
The move will give Democrats a filibuster-proof 60 vote majority in the Senate, presuming Minnesota's Al Franken is eventually seated. However, in his statement Specter said his opposition to the Employee Free Choice Act -- widely seen as a defense against a Republican primary challenge -- will not change.
Arlen Specter Switching Parties From Republican To Democrat
Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Penn.) is becoming a Democrat. "I have decided to run for re-election in 2010 in the Democratic primary," said Specter in a statement ...
www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/28/arlen-specter...
Franken FINALLY seated 7/7/09....
you need to read my post not what you want to read as here;
the senate rules for cloture call for "duly chosen and sworn". they had 3/5ths with 98 members and 59 votes.read up on senatorial rules and VOTING calculus
The rules don't say 60, thats just a number based on a full chamber, it reads; 3/5ths of the duly chosen and sworn. I am far from an expert but I can read.*shrugs* google is your friend.