About time!

I mentioned on Wednesday that several MTRs had passed - mostly provisions that repeated others in the bill, or which were already law.

Just grandstanding.

But, with the MTR on HR 1433, the GOP actually scored a substantive (if temporary) victory: the MTR proposed would have lifted the gun ban in DC.

And, clearly, the Dem leadership were unclear that they could kill it, because they pulled the bill rather than allow the MTR a vote.

(This may have happened before in the 110th: we rather rely for political analysis on RCVs happening; when the whole point is that a vote hasn't happened, it's tricky to pick up!)

Of course, all the leadership need do is bring the bill back under a new rule that doesn't allow a MTR - or allows one only without instructions, which means that no amendment is included.

But this wouldn't exactly be the goo-goo House management that was promised in New Direction!

Update [2007-3-25 19:31:2 by skeptic06]:

Nancy's interview this week pulled up a technical point on the HR 1433 MTR: it's instruction was for the committee to report back promptly rather than forthwith (my comment).

(See my earlier pieces, search for CRS reports (several on MTRs), get Chapter 48 of House Practice from this useful GPO page.)