Harry Reid's Clay Pigeon Ploy

Here's and excerpt of the details of his plan to push the immigration bill through, from an article by Julie Hirschfeld Davis:

Rare Tactic May Allow Immigration Votes

WASHINGTON (AP) - Only in the arcane world of the U.S. Senate could a quirky gambit known as a "clay pigeon" make the difference between passage of an important immigration measure and its death at the hands of opponents.

Democratic leaders hope the complex maneuver - which makes use of the Senate's labyrinthine rules to insist on votes on amendments - will frustrate conservatives' attempts to derail the embattled immigration bill, instead putting it on a fast track to passage next week.

Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he would revive the bill to legalize as many as 12 million unlawful immigrants late this week. To do so, though, he needs backing from 60 senators, and a way to guarantee votes on a tentative list of 22 Republican and Democratic amendments whose consideration is seen as vital to satisfying key waverers.

The so-called clay pigeon is how he's expected to do it, under a strategy that was still taking shape Monday.

The tactic gets its name from the target used in skeet shooting, which explodes into bits as it is hit. In the Senate, an amendment is the target, and any one senator can demand that it be divided into separate fragments to be voted on piecemeal.

Under the tentative plan, Reid as early as Friday would launch his target - an amendment encompassing all 22 proposals - and shoot it into its component pieces. The Senate would then vote on ending debate on the immigration measure, which would take 60 votes and limit discussion of the bill to 30 more hours. After that interval, all 22 amendments would have to be voted on, with little opportunity for foes to interfere.

Ironically, the move is usually used by mavericks - not leaders - to slow down legislation, not free it from a procedural thicket. [...]

What an insult to the American people. I hope this backfires on Reid and the Democrats in the worst possible way. And also on the Republicans who vote for this terrible bill that the majority of Americans clearly oppose.

Before dealing with ANY immigration reforms, our politicians need to do their damn jobs, by SECURING OUR BORDERS. Anything else they propose will be useless unless our borders are secured FIRST.

I'm just wondering what is the best way to kick their asses until they "get it"?