February 25, 1988: "Seargent-at-Arms be instructed to arrest absent senators

[adamuu]

Democrats, angered by the continued filibuster, forced Republicans to stay on the floor around the clock. As time continued, Senate Majority leader Robert Byrd (D-WV) used a little known provision to order the Senators to the floor at 12:30 in the morning. When Republicans refused to heed the order, Byrd used another provision to compel the hold-outs.

"Madame President, I move that the Seargent-at-Arms be instructed to arrest absent senators and bring them to floor," Senate Majority leader Robert Byrd (D-WV) said.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/campaign/issues/1988_retro.html

Discovered in a Link here:
Doris Kearns Goodwin: "Let Them Filibuster."
http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2010/01/29/doris-kearns-goodwin-let-them-filibuster/

Also, though some reports have suggested that it is no longer possible to do this under the Senate rules, this is not true. It simply requires the majority to muster enough will and discipline to keep a quorum on the floor. Here's an account of how it worked as recently as 1988.

Edit: wrong date.

[adamuu]

1. Seriously, all, this is a MUST READ.

Many Republicans fled from the Sergeant-at-Arms and at one point Senator Bob Packwood (R-OR) was bodily carried onto the floor of the Senate.

snip

This brought his to Packwood, who -- having heard that the Giugni posse was on the prowl -- had locked the doors of his Russell Building office, barricading one of them with a chair. But Giugni had a passkey and entered the outer office. Packwood, hearing the intruders, jammed his shoulder against his door just as Giugni was coming through, reinjuring a finger that he had broken two weeks ago in Oregon.

Republicans denounced Senator Byrd's actions and expressed outrage at the arrest order and at Sen. Packwood's injury in particular.

Senator Arlen Specter"Senator's Packwood fingers will heal, but I don't know if the United States Senate will heal," said Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) on the floor the next day. "The scar tissue is going very deep at this time in the life of the Senate as a result of what happened yesterday."

[anonymous171]

2. Ahh, those were the days when democrats had a spine. nt