By Bob Katzen
Of the 1,058 amendments filed by senators, only 21 came to a roll call vote. Many others were simply approved or rejected one at a time on voice votes, some with debate and some without debate.
To move things along even faster, the Senate also did its usual “bundling” of many amendments. Instead of acting on each amendment one at a time, hundreds of the proposed amendments are bundled and put into two piles—one pile that will be approved and the other that will be rejected, without a roll call, on voice votes where it is impossible to tell which way a senator votes.
Senate President Karen Spilka, or the senator who is filling in for her at the podium, orchestrates the approval and rejection of the bundled amendments with a simple: “All those in favor say ‘Aye,’ those opposed say ‘No.’ The Ayes have it and the amendments are approved.” Or: “All those in favor say ‘Aye,’ those opposed say ‘No.’ The No’s have it and the amendments are rejected.”
Senators don’t actually vote “Yes” or “No,” and, in fact, they don’t say a word. The outcome was predetermined earlier behind closed doors. Supporters of the system say that any senator who sponsored an amendment that is in the “No” pile can bring it to the floor and ask for an up or down vote on the amendment itself. They say this system has worked well for many years.
Critics say that most of the time members do not bring their amendment, which was destined for the “No” pile, to the floor for an up-or-down vote because that is not the way the game is played. It is an “expected tradition” that in most cases you accept the fate of your amendment as determined by Democratic leaders.