They’re bringing out the cots again in the Senate. These guys have offices, with BIG COMFY COUCHES, that are about a five-minute walk from the Senate floor. They have 15 minutes to get to the floor when the buzzers go off for a vote or a quorum call (though in practice the parliamentarian will hold the vote open longer if necessary). Many of them also have hideaways that are in the Capitol itself, just a few steps from the Chamber. And we are talking about ONE ALL-NIGHTER, not a nine-day filibuster. But if it makes them feel like Senators:
(FYI: Here’s the last time they pulled out the cots. It was a stunt when Bill Frist did it, too.)
UPDATE: Several commenters, including Cfaller96 and Anonymous, raise the issue of filibusters. Harry Reid’s idea with this all-nighter is to call attention to the fact that the Republicans are staging one against the various proposals to change course in the Iraq War. But, as Anonymous suggests, there’s a better way to call attention to this filibuster: Make them actually do it–not just for one night, but until everyone is ready to drop from exhaustion and Senators have to start cancelling their fundraisers and their weekend trips. Maybe then they might really have to use those cots.
