The vote-a-rama is a feature of the Senate budget process, which Democrats use to pass a major climate, tax and health care bill by 51 votes, bypassing a Republican filibuster.
The budget reconciliation process allows the party that controls the Senate to pass major legislation with a simple majority, but the trade-off is that Democrats must allow Republicans to vote on an unlimited number of successive amendments.
Each side has only one minute to make an argument for or against an amendment before a vote is called.
Votes on amendments that violate the Byrd Rule, which requires legislation passed through the budget reconciliation process to have a non-tangential impact on spending, revenue or the debt limit, are subject to procedural challenges, which require the removal of 60 votes.
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The first amendment on the vote-a-rama is one sponsored by Senate Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), which would require Medicare not to pay more than the Department of Veterans Affairs does for prescription drugs medicines.
The last Senate vote-a-rama in August 2021 to pass the budget resolution lasted 14 hours and included consideration of more than 40 amendments.
Democratic senators say they expect this weekend’s vote-a-rama to last until 11 a.m. or noon Sunday, judging by past experiences.
