Minorities in Congress flex muscles with mixed results

As Robert Burns wrote, “The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” That seemed especially applicable to Congress last week, when its carefully crafted legislative schedule blew up amid surprises at the Capitol.

Abrupt changes in a democratic legislature can occur when individual members and groups exploit expedited procedures embedded in the Constitution, laws and standing rules to preempt the leadership’s announced schedule. In a Congress with such razor thin margins of party control, this is more likely to happen at the instigation of the minority party.

That alone seldom succeeds unless those efforts can attract a handful of majority party members. Mathematically, on selective issues, a minority of the majority party, plus a majority of the minority party can sometimes produce a new majority. That formula was in play last week when several matters intruded on the leadership’s regular schedule.

On Wednesday and Thursday, the Senate and House preempted their regular business by forcing consideration of resolutions to terminate U.S. military hostilities in Iran. On Wednesday, April 15, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) offered a motion to discharge from the Foreign Relations Committee a war powers resolution introduced by Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), a double-amputee Iraq War veteran. After a spirited debate, the discharge motion was rejected, 47-52, with only one Republican, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), voting in favor.

That same day, Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, asked unanimous consent to call-up at any time a similar Iran war termination resolution........

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