Reid, Grassley feud over Senate rules

Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Wednesday that he was “disappointed” in Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) for introducing a resolution that would limit the majority’s right to file cloture motions.

Grassley said Wednesday that he was introducing a resolution that would prevent Reid from filing cloture motions immediately after the Senate begins consideration of a bill.

{mosads}“I plan to introduce the Stop Cloture Abuse Resolution, which has the appropriate acronym SCAR … because cloture abuse threatens to scar the Senate,” Grassley said on the Senate floor. 

Grassley said his resolution would require at least 24 hours to pass after the Senate begins to consider a bill before the Majority Leader could file a motion to end debate. He said that was needed because Reid has abused the cloture motion, filing more than 500 times.

Reid said Grassley’s description of events was from a “fairy tale.”

“I am quite disappointed in my friend, the senior senator from Iowa ,” Reid said. “He has a view of reality that only exists in fairy tales. … My friend from Iowa is living in a dream world.”

Reid compared Grassley’s complaint to that of an arsonist complaining about hearing fire truck sirens because Republicans are forcing Reid to file cloture by obstructing progress on legislation.

“He complains that I file too many cloture motions,” Reid said. “I don’t like to do it. I file these petitions because Republicans have made it clear that we can’t vote on anything without going through cloture.”

Ever since Democrats unilaterally changed the Senate filibuster rules on executive and judicial nominees using the “nuclear option,” Grassley has complained that the disfunction of the Senate has hit an all-time high.