US Senate prepares for all night 'vote-a-rama' on Obamacare

While a chunk of Americans will be snoozing away tonight, the U.S. Senate's plan for an all-night "vote-a-rama" provides a fitting nightcap for one of Washington's more entertaining days.

A rather unusual cultural institution within our Senate, a vote-a-rama involves all 100 Senators and is a byproduct of the limits placed on debating budgets resolutions under the Congressional Budget Act.

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In this case, the Senate vote-a-rama is a flurry of votes on a lot of budget resolutions. Under the Congressional Budget Act, reconciliation bills are limited to 20 hours, so, since the resolutions are not able to be filibustered, the process is drawn out for hours to be able to offer amendments.

And tonight, as Republicans make haste to repeal the Affordable Care Act, a largely Democratic group of lawmakers will offer amendments pertaining to the health care law in efforts to denounce the Republicans' overall goal to repeal the act.

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After the amendments have been offered, the Senate will move to approve the budget resolution -- a key event many Republicans will see as a victory.

However, not all Republicans are in favor of the spectacle due to uncertainty about how the law will be replaced and when a new law will be implemented once the Affordable Care Act unwinds.