Cloture is a parliamentary procedure used to end discussion and proceed to a vote. It can defeat filibusters and avoid irrelevant amendments. Stonewalling can disrupt the legislative process. The concept originated in the French National Assembly and was adopted by the British Parliament and the US Senate. A three-fifths vote is required to pass cloture in the US Senate.
Cloture or closure is a concept in parliamentary procedure which is the backbone of government in many nations of the world. If a closing motion is passed, discussion of the matter in question must end and a vote will proceed immediately. The concept can be used to defeat filibusters, and it is also used to shift the vote or to avoid introducing amendments that are not relevant to the bill under consideration. The training process in most parliamentary bodies is strictly outlined in their rules of conduct.
Considering a bill is an important part of the lawmaking process and can be quite lengthy. When a bill becomes law, there are a number of steps involved. All of these steps are designed to solicit input so that the bill is as fair as possible and so that everyone feels their questions have been addressed. In some cases, people who oppose a law will initiate stonewalling, a delaying tactic designed to prevent a law from being passed or drastically change it.
While stonewallers certainly have their place in the legislative process, they can also disrupt government operations. In some cases, even the right to filibuster has been grossly abused, as seen in the United States during the civil rights era. Without the deception option, a filibuster could potentially last for weeks, if a team of dedicated lawmakers were willing to team up to create a solid filibuster.
The French National Assembly was the birthplace of the cloture, which is also sometimes referred to as the “guillotine”, as it interrupts debate. In 1887, the concept crossed the Channel and was adopted by the British Parliament. In both houses, a motion to close passes by majority vote. In the House of Commons, however, the speaker can reject the motion if he believes minority concerns have not been addressed.
In the United States, which has a long history of filibustering the Senate, the shutdown was only enacted in 1917, with Rule 22 of the Rule. If a motion to close is introduced in the Senate, a three-fifths vote is required to pass, and there can be no more than 30 hours of discussion on the matter after the motion to close is passed. In this sense, cloture is used to limit debate and speed up voting, rather than truncating debate altogether.
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