Gold and Gupta: Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION
I. SENATE PROCEDURES GOVERNING DEBATE
II. CREATION OF THE FILIBUSTER
A. The “Dignified Senate”
B. The Inadvertent Creation of the Opportunity To Filibuster
C. The First Filibusters
III. THE CONSTITUTIONAL OPTION TO AMEND FORMALLY THE STANDING SENATE RULES
A. The Senate Adopts a Formal Cloture Rule (1917)
1. The “Willful Eleven”
2. The Constitutional Option Is Introduced
3. Cloture Established
B. The Vandenberg Ruling and Wherry Amendment: Cloture Broadened But Made More Difficult (1948-1949)
C. The Return to Cloture by Two-Thirds Present (1953-1959)
1. The Civil Rights “Gravedigger”
2. The Constitutional Option Is Re-Introduced (1953)
3. Nixon’s Advisory Opinion (1957)
4. The Constitutional Option Preempted: The Leadership Pushes Through a Compromise(1959)
D. Three-Fifths Cloture Reform (1960-1975)
1. The “Biannual Ritual” Continues (1961-1971)
2. The Leadership Forges a Three-Fifths Compromise (1975)
E. The Constitutional Option: An Action-Forcing Mechanism
IV. THE CONSTITUTIONAL OPTION
TO RENDER NEW RULES PRECEDENT
A. A Plan of Action
B. The Plan in Action
1. An 1890 Variant of the Constitutional Option by Precedent
2. Later Models To Change Senate Procedures by Precedent: Four Examples
a) A Precedent To End Post-Cloture Filibusters (1977)
b) A Precedent Limiting Amendments to Appropriations Bills (1979)
c) A Precedent Governing Consideration of Nominations (1980)
d) Precedents Concerning Rule XII’s Voting Procedures (1987)
V. CHANGING SENATE PROCEDURES VIA STANDING ORDERS
CONCLUSION