Using the Quorum Call

The scurrilous Democrats who ran off to an Illinois resort to stop Scott Walker may seem to be opening a new frontier of political game-playing but really, they haven't. Pulling stunts is not unusual for a minority party, something ironically confirmed by Don Rumsfeld's new memoir "Known and Unknown":

So before the debate legislation came up for a vote, one of us would ask for a quorum call and the rest of us would work to ensure there were never enough members present on the House floor for debate or votes to continue.

That was from page 117. He was operating in the Republican minority in the late 60s towards the end of the Johnson administration, using the quorum call to delay a vote.

Rummy goes on to say that Speaker of the House John McCormack threatened to send out the Capitol Police to physically round up members and lock them in the chamber, which was largely a bluff.

Maybe this is why the Wisconsin Repubs promised not to drop the hammer on their absentee colleagues--behind the scenes they know politics is politics. The real action begins this week as all the Dem delay options are exhausted, the crowds thin, and Governor Walker and company get to decide whether they want to try a few stunts of their own (knowing how the national media will spin things).

Meanwhile, here are some more facts to digest about recent Badger political history.