An e-mail from reader Jim B. illustrates why there seems to be so much confusion on this issue:

Cloture is ending debate, to move on to the vote. Voting against cloture is voting to continue debate. It is only in the perverted world of the Senate where the threat of a filibuster is considered a successful filibuster, forcing them to move on to other business, that one can say that debate has been cut off by failing to vote for cutting off debate.

That’s almost always true, but not in this case. Here, the cloture vote was a vote to end debate on a motion to proceed with debate on the Warner-Levin resolution, which is the one the Dems want to pass. So by voting to continue debate on the motion to proceed with debate on the Warner bill, the GOP technically did block debate on that specific resolution. That’s because the Republicans want the Senate to consider Sen. Gregg’s resolution also, but the Democrats are afraid to let that happen because Gregg’s resolution is a) more popular and b) commits the Democrats to not cutting off any funds for forces in the field.

Does that help clear things up?