Renegade Democrats’ votes caused late night chaos

The 14 House Democrats who voted for a contentious procedural rule Thursday night that threw the House into chaos actually violated a leadership policy designed to ensure party unity.

The vote, aides said, has sparked renewed discussions among Democratic leaders about changing the way they deal with the procedural votes sponsored by the minority, called “motions to recommit.”

{mosads}In April, Democratic leaders asked members to vote against such motions if they actually “recommit” the bill back to committee. Such a move is often fatal to the underlying bill.

Other motions to recommit simply amend the bill and do not send it back to committee. Democratic leaders decided not to enforce party discipline on such bills, allowing members to vote their conscience.

Last night’s vote would have sent the Agriculture Appropriations bill back to committee to bar illegal immigrants from receiving federal funds, the kind of vote members have been instructed to vote against.

But at first, 19 Democrats voted against it. In the end, five members changed their vote, so in the tally on the House website, 14 Democrats voted against it.

When Republicans controlled the House, all members were ordered to vote against motions to recommit from the Democratic minority as a matter of party discipline.

Since Democrats took over in January, Republicans have succeeded in bedeviling the new majority with procedural motions that force Democrats to take unpopular stands to save a bill.

The GOP stalled consideration of a bill giving Washington, D.C. and Utah a voting representative in Congress by bringing up a gun-related measure.

When Democrats considered changing the rules in June, Republicans used other procedural tactics to shut down the floor until Democrats agreed not to attempt the change.

House Rules Chairwoman Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.) has advocated requiring all Democrats to vote against GOP procedural motions. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) has said that’s not necessary.

Republicans say any attempt to change the way procedural motions are handled shows that Democrats are in disarray.

“The first time we had them at check-mate with a motion-to-recommit promptly they ran off the floor to avoid the vote and hatched a plan to gut the rules. This time, they simply changed the vote to their desired outcome,” said Brian Kennedy, spokesman for House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio). “And now we’re back to changing the House’s 185-year old germaneness rules? This majority is an embarrassment to the institution.”