Editing Cloture (section)

==United States==
{{United States Senate}}

===History===
{{See also|Filibuster in the United States Senate|Nuclear option}}
On 8 March 1917, during [[World War I]], a rule allowing cloture of debate was adopted by the Senate by a vote of 76–3<ref>55 [https://books.google.com/books?id=bNOm2K-A4AoC Congressional Record] p. 45 (8 March 1917)</ref> at the urging of President [[Woodrow Wilson]],<ref name="Filibuster_Cloture">{{cite web |url = https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Filibuster_Cloture.htm | title= Filibuster and Cloture |publisher=United States Senate |access-date=5 March 2010}}</ref> after a group of 12 anti-war senators managed to kill a bill that would have allowed Wilson to arm [[Merchant Vessel|merchant vessels]] in the face of unrestricted [[U-boat Campaign (World War I)|German submarine warfare]].<ref>See [[John F. Kennedy]]'s [[Profiles in Courage]] (chapter on [[George W. Norris|George Norris]]) for a description of the event.</ref> This effort was led by Republican Senators [[Henry Cabot Lodge]] and [[Charles Curtis]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=U.S. Senate: Senate Leaders |url=https://www.senate.gov/about/origins-foundations/parties-leadership/curtis-charles.htm |access-date=2023-12-07 |website=www.senate.gov}}</ref> This was successfully invoked for the first time on 15 November 1919,<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Senate and the League of Nations |publisher=United States Senate|url=https://www.senate.gov/reference/reference_item/Versailles.htm|access-date=2008-11-19}}</ref> during the [[66th United States Congress|66th Congress]], to end a [[filibuster]] on the [[Treaty of Versailles]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Filibuster_Cloture.htm |title=Filibuster and Cloture |publisher=United States Senate}}</ref>

The Senate's rules originally<ref>Koger, Gregory ''Cloture Reform and Party Government in the Senate, 1918–1925'', Journal of Politics, Vol. 68, No. 3 (Aug 2006), pp. 708–719.</ref> required a [[supermajority]] of two-thirds of all senators present and voting to invoke cloture.<ref>{{cite news |author=Times staff, wires |title=Q&A: How does a filibuster work? |newspaper=St. Petersburg Times |date=2008-11-18 |url=http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article907426.ece |access-date=2008-11-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090202070420/http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article907426.ece |archive-date=2 February 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Democrats still in the quest for 60 Senate seats |publisher=CNN |date=2008-11-04 |url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/11/04/senate.races.results/ |access-date=2008-11-19}}</ref> For example, if all 100 senators voted on a cloture motion, 67 affirmative votes were required to invoke cloture. If some senators were absent and only 80 senators voted, only 54 would have to vote in favor.<ref name="senate.gov">[https://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/RL30360.pdf ''Filibusters and Cloture in the Senate''], Richard S. Beth and Stanley Bach, Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress: 23 March 2003, p. 13.</ref> In the early years of the cloture rule, it proved very difficult to achieve this. The Senate tried 11 times between 1927 and 1962 to invoke cloture, but failed each time. Filibuster use was particularly heavy by Democratic senators from southern states to block [[civil rights]] legislation.<ref>[[Robert D. Loevy|Loevy, Robert D.]] (1997). ''The Civil Rights Act of 1964: The Passage of the Law that Ended Racial Segregation'' SUNY Press. p. 29.</ref>

In 1975, the [[94th United States Congress|Democratic Senate majority]], having achieved a net gain of four seats in the [[1974 United States Senate elections|1974 Senate elections]] to attain a strength of 61 (with an additional independent senator caucusing with them for a total of 62), reduced the necessary supermajority to three-fifths of senators duly chosen and sworn.<ref>[http://rule22.wordpress.com/what-is-rule-22/ "What is Rule 22?"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110521094452/http://rule22.wordpress.com/what-is-rule-22/ |date=21 May 2011 }}, Rule22 Blog, 5/28/2011.</ref> In practice, most bills cannot become law without the support of 60 senators.

Under the Senate rules and precedents, certain questions are nondebatable or debate time on them is limited, most notably bills considered under the [[Reconciliation (United States Congress)|reconciliation]] procedure or joint resolutions providing for [[Congressional Review Act|congressional disapproval]]. Therefore, these measures cannot be filibustered and are not subjected to the supermajority cloture threshold. Although filing cloture on nondebatable measures is redundant, it has been done on occasion.<ref name=RFloyd1992>{{cite book |last=Riddick |first=Floyd M. |date=1992 |title=Riddick's Senate Procedure |url=https://riddick.gpo.gov/documents/Cloture%20Procedure.pdf |publisher=Government Printing Office}}</ref>{{rp|302}}

On November 21, 2013, after many of President [[Barack Obama]]'s nominees had been filibustered (most notably, Republicans refused to confirm any nominees to the [[United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit]]), Majority Leader [[Harry Reid]] raised a point of order that the threshold for invoking cloture on nominations, other than those to the [[Supreme Court of the United States]], is a simple majority. The presiding officer overruled the point of order. The ruling of the chair was overruled by the Senate by a vote of 48–52, with all Republicans, as well as Democratic Senators [[Carl Levin]], [[Joe Manchin]] and [[Mark Pryor]], voting in favor of sustaining the decision of the chair.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.msnbc.com/hardball/senate-dems-move-closer-nuclear-option-msna217176 |title=Senate smacks down filibuster |last=Frumin |first=Aliyah |date=2013-11-21 |publisher=MSNBC |access-date=2022-10-01}}</ref> 

On April 6, 2017, following the filibuster of [[Neil Gorsuch]]'s nomination to the [[Supreme Court of the United States]], Majority Leader [[Mitch McConnell]] raised a point of order that the 2013 precedent also applied to Supreme Court nominations. The presiding officer overruled the point of order. The ruling of the chair was overturned by the Senate by a vote of 48–52, with all Democrats voting to sustain the decision of the chair. As a result of these two precedents, the threshold for invoking cloture on nominations is now a simple majority.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/2017/04/06/522847700/senate-pulls-nuclear-trigger-to-ease-gorsuch-confirmation |title=Senate Pulls 'Nuclear' Trigger To Ease Gorsuch Confirmation |last=Davis |first=Susan |date=2017-04-06 |publisher=NPR|access-date=2022-10-01}}</ref>

In the [[United States House of Representatives]], the equivalent motion is the [[previous question]].

===Procedure===

The procedure for invoking cloture is as follows:<ref>{{cite report |author=United States Senate |date=2013-11-04 |title=Standing Rules of the Senate |url=https://www.rules.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/CDOC-113sdoc18.pdf |pages=21–23}}</ref>
* A minimum of 16 senators must sign a cloture motion that states, "We, the undersigned Senators, in accordance with the provisions of Rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on [the measure]."
* Any senator (generally the majority leader) may present the cloture motion at any time (including while another senator is speaking<ref name=RFloyd1992/>{{rp|282}}) while the question to which the cloture motion is directed is pending.
* The Senate then often moves on to other business.
* One hour after the Senate convenes on the second calendar day of session following the filing of the cloture motion (or at a time designated by unanimous consent), the cloture motion ripens, and the presiding officer directs the clerk to report the cloture motion.
* The presiding officer directs the clerk to call the roll to ascertain the presence of a [[quorum]]. In practice, this mandatory quorum call is almost always waived by unanimous consent.
* The presiding officer puts to the Senate the question, "Is it the sense of the Senate that debate shall be brought to a close?"
* The Senate votes on the cloture motion by the yeas and nays. A majority of three-fifths of senators duly chosen and sworn (60 votes if there is no more than one vacancy in the Senate) is required for most questions. A two-thirds majority of senators present and voting is required to invoke cloture on a motion or resolution to amend the Standing Rules of the Senate. Under the precedents set by the Senate on November 21, 2013, and April 6, 2017, a simple majority of senators present and voting is required to invoke cloture on nominations.<ref>{{cite report |author=Congressional Research Service |date=2017-04-07 |title=Filibusters and Cloture in the Senate |url=https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/RL/RL30360 |page=12}}</ref>

After cloture is invoked, the Senate automatically proceeds to consider the measure on which cloture was invoked (if it was not before the Senate already).
The following restrictions apply:
* The clotured measure remains the unfinished business to the exclusion of all other business until disposed of.
* No senator may speak for more than one hour. A senator may yield part or all of their one hour to a floor manager or leader, who may in turn yield that time to other senators. No manager nor leader may have more than two hours yielded to them by another senator.
* The two-speech rule does not apply.<ref name=RFloyd1992/>{{rp|305}}
* Senators may yield back part or all of their one hour. This yielding does not reduce the total time available for consideration of the measure.<ref name=RFloyd1992/>{{rp|306}}
* No senator may propose more than two amendments until every senator has had the opportunity to do the same.
* No amendment may be proposed unless it had been submitted in writing to the journal clerk by 1 o'clock p.m. on the day following the filing of the cloture motion in the case of a first-degree amendment or one hour prior to the beginning of the cloture vote in the case of a second-degree amendment.
* All amendments must be germane.
* Senators may continue to offer amendments even if their time for debate has expired.<ref name=RFloyd1992/>{{rp|326}}
* No dilatory motions or quorum calls are in order.
* After 30 hours of debate on the measure, the presiding officer puts the question on any pending amendments and the clotured measure. Under the precedent set on April 3, 2019, post-cloture time on all nominations, other than those to the [[Supreme Court of the United States]], those to the [[United States courts of appeals]] and those to a position at Level I of the [[Executive Schedule]], is two hours.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/2019/04/03/709489797/senate-rewrites-rules-to-speed-confirmations-for-some-trump-nominees |title=Senate Rewrites Rules To Speed Confirmations For Some Trump Nominees |last=Snell |first=Kelsey |date=2019-04-03 |publisher=NPR |access-date=2022-10-01}}</ref>
* Once post-cloture time has expired, the only motions in order are motions to reconsider and motions to table. One quorum call may also be demanded by a senator. Any senator who has not used nor yielded back ten minutes is guaranteed such time to speak to the measure.

Under rule XXII, paragraph 3, added in January 2013, a cloture motion signed by 16 senators (including the majority leader, minority leader, 7 other majority senators and 7 other minority senators) presented on a motion to proceed ripens one hour after the Senate convenes on the following calendar day. If cloture is invoked, the motion to proceed is not debatable.<ref name="Elizabeth Rybicki">{{cite report |author=Elizabeth Rybicki |date=2013-03-19 |title=Changes to Senate Procedures at the Start of the 113th Congress Affecting the Operation of Cloture (S.Res. 15 and S.Res. 16) |url=https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R42996}}</ref>

Under rule XXVIII, paragraph 2, added in January 2013, a cloture motion on a compound motion to go to conference ripens two hours after it is filed. If cloture is invoked, the compound motion is not debatable.<ref name="Elizabeth Rybicki"/>

[[File:US Senate cloture since 1917.png|thumb|upright=3.5|center|alt=Number of cloture motions filed, voted on, and invoked by the U.S. Senate, 1917−2014|Cloture voting in the United States Senate, 1917−2014<ref name="clotureCounts">{{Cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/clotureCounts.htm |title=Senate Action on Cloture Motions|publisher=United States Senate |access-date=22 November 2013}}</ref>]]