"What you were watching was the result of bringing those appropriations
bills to the floor under 'open' rules -- that is, a special rule controlling
debate, adopted by the House before consideration of the bill itself (called the
'underlying bill'), which essentially allows for an unlimited number of
amendments to be considered. When the opposition party is feeling feisty, they
can gum up the works with literally hundreds of amendments, calling for a vote
on each one. This sometimes leads the majority to consider legislation under a
closed rule, which allows no amendments, or only those pre-approved by the Rules
Committee (usually at the suggestion of the Chair of the committee that wrote
the bill). In between, there are varying types of rules. Modified open rules,
modified closed rules, plus wacky hybrid rules like the King/Queen of the Hill,
which are ridiculous enough that we'll set their discussion aside for
now."
Read this whole post by clicking on the link. It deals with some of the workings of the Congress, something that I think everyone should have some understanding of.
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