Congress paused business Thursday to pay tribute to former Sen. Robert Dole who died Sunday. Following that, the Senate will take up a procedural vote to advance the debt ceiling deal Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell worked out. The House’s other business is scheduled for Thursday, and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer has cancelled a Friday session for Dole’s services. But let’s get back to the Senate, where the debt ceiling deal plays out, because it is definitely worth examining. At roughly 12:30 p.m. ET, they will hold a cloture vote to allow the Senate to bring a bill allowing the debt ceiling to be raised—with a simple majority vote—to the floor just for debate. That vote will have a 60-vote margin, so 10 Republican senators have agreed to break the filibuster on a bill that provides a one-time exemption for the debt ceiling from the filibuster, but there aren’t 10 Republicans who would agree to breaking the filibuster to raise the debt ceiling. No, they had to get the House involved, get them to write a bill setting out this convoluted Senate procedure, all so Republicans could be one step removed from agreeing to pay the nation’s bills. After the Senate passes the bill that breaks the filibuster to increase the debt limit, that bill has to go to President Biden for his signature. Once it’s law, the Senate can take that final, simple majority vote and send it to the House for it to give the nation a reprieve. That can happen fairly quickly, as the whole process guarantees a fast track without the usual mandatory 30 hours of supposed debate time. Read more