UPDATE:
Rand Paul Will Force Patriot Act Provisions to Expire:
"... invoking cloture on the first vote is just the first step of many, with the clock ticking. That cloture vote merely sets up another vote on proceeding to the bill. There are up to 30 hours of debate in order after the first cloture vote, before voting on the motion to proceed to the bill, of which Paul is entitled to one. If no one else joins Paul [note:
other Senators have now joined Rand Paul, including
Democrat Senators Wyden and Heinrich]
, in chewing up floor time with hour-long speechifying, the Senate could then vote on adopting the motion to proceed Sunday evening. But without Paul’s consent the programs in question would go dark because McConnell would still have to file a cloture motion to end Paul’s filibuster of the bill itself. And that vote, under the rules, wouldn’t occur until 1 a.m. Tuesday at the earliest. Under the rules, cloture motions must sit through an intervening day, which would be Monday if McConnell were able to move to cut off debate on a bill on Sunday. Following that 1 a.m. Tuesday cloture vote, again assuming all possible speed, Paul would be entitled to chew up another hour talking on the floor. That’s with maximum speed. If Paul finds an army of senators backing his filibuster, the process would take even longer due to the 30-hour rule..."
LIVE Now:
US Senate Debate on NSA Surveillance | Video | C-SPAN.org - Technical note for those not familiar with U.S.Senate procedure: "Mr. President" refers to the
President Pro Tempore (presiding officer) of the Senate,
not the President of the United States.
