Worst Congress in history. Send'em ALL home. Start over with 100% new people...citizen legislators instead of career politicians. Period. - Frank on Politico.com Shenanigans

Frank is commenting on this brouhaha.

The purpose of parliamentary procedure is to ensure that the rules are followed by both sides.  In this case, the Dems were losing a vote, stopped the voting, and erased the whole matter like it hadn't happened.  History is reversible.  Several of the commenter's mentioned times when the Republicans tried something of the same ploy.

In a massive flare-up of partisan tensions, Republicans walked out on a House vote late Thursday night to protest what they believed to be Democratic maneuvers to reverse an unfavorable outcome for them.

The flap represents a complete breakdown in parliamentary procedure and a distinct low for the sometimes bitterly divided chamber because members of one party have rarely, if ever, walked off the floor without casting a vote.

The rancor erupted shortly before 11 p.m. as Rep. Michael R. McNulty (D-N.Y.) gaveled close the vote on a standard procedural measure with the outcome still in doubt.

Details remain fuzzy, but numerous Republicans argued afterward that they had secured a 215-213 win on their motion to bar undocumented immigrants from receiving any federal funds apportioned in the agricultural spending bill for employment or rental assistance. Democrats, however, argued the measure was deadlocked at 214-214 and failed, members and aides on both sides of the aisle said afterward.

One GOP aide saw McNulty gavel the vote to a close after receiving a signal from his leaders - but before reading the official tally. And votes continued to shift even after he closed the roll call - a strange development in itself.

Whatever the final tally, acrimony quickly exploded between lawmakers on either side of the aisle as Democratic leaders tried to plot a solution, while parliamentarians on either side argued over protocol.

Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) eventually offered a motion to reconsider, according to floor staff on either side, ostensibly giving members a chance to recast their votes. But the maneuver sparked a chorus of angry protests from the Republicans, yelling “shame” on Democrats, while they returned fire with angry volleys of their own.

When Democrats finally moved to consider the spending bill as the last vote of the night, furious Republicans left the chamber en masse to protest the maneuver. The House eventually recessed at 11:18 p.m. But Republicans quickly discovered that there was no longer any record of the controversial vote and immediately charged Democrats with erasing the bad result.

"Obviously, the Democrats don't want to stand up against illegal immigration - so much so that they're willing to cheat in order to win a vote,' Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) said in an e-mail. "They're desperate - and it shows."

The official House website did not show a record of the vote as of 1 a.m. Friday.

The Wingers walk out and the Moonbats erase the vote...neither party is worth what we pay them, or the power and perks they demand.   No wonder the approval rating for Congress is 3% on immigration issues.  Yes, you read that right...3% of Americans approve of how Congress handles the illegals.

The President doesn't do much better at 9%, but Congress holds that solid 3% on their handling of Iraq, while the President has 8 times the support at 24%.  The question buzzing around the Intr@W3b is  - Can Congress hit Zero.  I wouldn't put it past them.

I've heard this Congress called the 'Jimmy Carter of Congresses'.  Wow, now that hurts.

Captain's Quarters has what happened in the last few minutes of the vote.

Update from American Thinker

This morning, Majority Leader Hoyer appeared on the House floor and attempted to calm the waters with an empty apology. Hoyer promised to refer the matter to the House ethics committee for a complete review. An unconvinced Minority Leader John A. Boehner, (R-OH) compared such a solution to sending it into "a black hole."

With the House still in a limbo recess, the two are said to be in conference, supposedly in search of an agreement on how to proceed.

How indeed -- Republicans insist that the Dems violated voting rules and demand that the original vote stand while Dems appear quite happy with the results they chicaned and wish to move on.

Meanwhile, as all major news services continue to cover the tragic Minneapolis bridge collapse exclusively, C-SPAN just aired a group of Republican representatives commenting on last night's debacle.

Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana was first to speak and demanded that their winning vote, which denies taxpayer dollars to provide welfare benefits and free medical insurance to illegal immigrants, must stand. Subsequent speakers spoke of a Democratic party more interested in feeding, educating and sheltering illegals than American citizens.

Brian Bilbray (R-CA) asked rhetorically how we can maintain a representative form of government when voting rules are so easily broken.

Next stop: Single Digit Congressional approval ratings?

It is in the nature of the house for things like this to happen whomever is in charge.  I have read that whatever party is in power will gavel down the vote closed when they are winning, or leave the vote open past normal limits in the hopes of strong-arming some more votes.  Never in the history of the House has one party gaveled down the vote when they had obviously lost (with no votes left for arm-twisting), and then erased the vote like it never happened.  A mistake perhaps.I stand on my opinion...send them all home.