Those of you who have been following the excellent HBO series "Rome" may recall a similar example of senatorial brinksmanship. The Senate votes for a bill censuring Caesar and declaring him a traitor and criminal, and ordering him to report for trial, to let him know he has absolutely no support in Rome among the Senators or the oligarchy and so discourage his maneuvering for power. They are counting on Mark Antony, Caesar's ally, who has veto power in the Senate, to derail the bill, since they realize that if Caesar is cornered this way he will have no choice but to fight, and he has considerable military resources.

Unfortunately, after the bill is voted on, an unexpected brawl breaks out between the two factions in the Senate and in the ensuing chaos, Antony is attacked, barely fleeing with his life, and does not get a chance to veto the legislation. The vote stands, and Rome is on the way to civil war and the end of the Republic.