Senate

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Bunning Cuts Deal, Ends Jobless Filibuster
Bunning Cuts Deal, Ends Jobless Filibuster
UPDATED
Mar 2, 2010 8:54 PM CST

Bunning Cuts Deal, Ends Jobless Filibuster

Benefits will be extended a month; senator can offer amendment

(Newser) - Republican Jim Bunning has agreed to end the one-man filibuster that’s cut unemployment and other benefits to thousands of workers, making a deal with the Senate leaders of both parties tonight. Roll Call reports that Bunning will support a one-month extension of the benefits in return for the Senate...

Obama Embraces Four GOP Health Care Proposals

White House says reform effort is entering its 'final act'

(Newser) - President Obama expressed his support for four Republican proposals on health care reform today, but the items don't address core GOP complaints and are unlikely to be game-changers. In a letter to congressional leaders, the president said he supported investments in malpractice tort reform, increasing Medicaid reimbursements for physicians, efforts...

Sen. Kyl: Jobless Benefits a 'Disincentive' to Find Work

If people are getting aid, they won't look for new job, he says

(Newser) - Federal unemployment benefits that expired over the weekend because of Republican objections in the Senate should maybe stay that way, says Sen. Jon Kyl, the minority whip. They don't “create new jobs,” he argues. “If anything, continuing to pay people unemployment compensation is a disincentive for them...

Bunning Filibuster Puts 2,000 Fed Workers on Furlough

Dept of Transportation workers placed on unpaid furlough

(Newser) - The Department of Transportation furloughed 2,000 workers without pay today, thanks to a filibuster from Republican Sen. Jim Bunning. Democrat and Republican leaders had agreed to pass a one-month extension of several standard federal programs, such as unemployment benefits, by unanimous consent, a process that makes voting unnecessary. Bunning’...

Cap-and-Trade Gets 'Radical' Overhaul in Senate

Kerry, Lieberman, and Graham are crafting an alternative

(Newser) - So long, cap-and-trade. The idea is all but dead in the Senate, with Joe Lieberman, John Kerry, and Lindsey Graham working on what the Washington Post calls a "radical, behind-the-scenes overhaul" of the bill to curb greenhouse gases. It's expected to be unveiled next month. Though cap-and-trade has passed...

Bunning Hijacks Senate With Jobless Filibuster

'I'm trying to make a point to the people of the United States'

(Newser) - Jim Bunning held the Senate hostage last night, filibustering a move to extend federal unemployment benefits, which will otherwise expire on Sunday, for 30 days. The clash lasted until just before midnight, with Bunning complaining that Democrats had forced him to miss the Kentucky-South Carolina basketball game. But “I'll...

Crist Denies Report He's Leaving GOP

Says it's a ploy by rival Marco Rubio

(Newser) - The merry-go-round of accusations continues in the Senate race in Florida between Republican Gov. Charlie Crist and his more-conservative rival, Marco Rubio. In the latest, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel is reporting that Crist is ready to ditch the GOP to run as an independent. A Crist spokesman immediately denounced it...

Senate Passes Jobs Bill 70-28
 Senate Passes Jobs Bill 70-28 
Tax Breaks for New Hires
Feb 24, 2010 10:16 AM CST

Senate Passes Jobs Bill 70-28

Bill to create 250K jobs wins bipartisan support

(Newser) - The Senate has passed a bill aimed at boosting job growth by giving tax breaks to businesses that hire the unemployed. Economists say the tax breaks could create perhaps 250,000 jobs. The jobs legislation would also extend highway and mass transit programs through the end of the year and...

Scott Brown: From Latchkey Kid to Male Model to Senator

His story is 'part Horatio Alger, part Zoolander'

(Newser) - One look at Scott Brown’s past, Frank Bruni writes, and you can see that “he’s indisputably self-made” with a “background that’s part Horatio Alger, part Zoolander.” Sure, the “famous truck” was purchased “not so he could haul lumber” but to haul his...

Scott Brown Changes the Senate Math
Scott Brown Changes the
Senate Math
NATE SILVER
Feb 23, 2010 7:56 AM CST

Scott Brown Changes the Senate Math

Moderate GOP votes up for grabs mean 56 could be Dems' new 60

(Newser) - Yesterday's Senate vote to end debate on the jobs bill showed that losing the supermajority may not be such a disaster for the Democrats after all, writes Nate Silver. Scott Brown joined four other moderate Republicans in voting to end a filibuster on Harry Reid's jobs bill, suggesting that a...

Evan Bayh: How We Can Fix the Senate

It all starts with a bipartisan lunch

(Newser) - Evan Bayh thinks the Senate is so hopelessly mired in partisan muck that the only way out is for Democrats and Republicans to break bread together. "Let’s start with a simple proposal: why not have a monthly lunch of all 100 senators?" he writes in a New York ...

Sen. Lautenberg Diagnosed With Stomach Cancer

New Jersey Dem still plans to finish term, run again in 2014

(Newser) - Frank Lautenberg, New Jersey’s 86-year-old senior senator, is set to undergo chemotherapy today, less than 24 hours after being diagnosed with treatable stomach cancer. Lautenberg is expected to recover, and says he still expects to finish out his term, and run for reelection in 2014. “This doesn’t...

Evan Bayh Calls It Quits
 Evan Bayh Calls It Quits 
Feb 15, 2010 10:27 AM CST

Evan Bayh Calls It Quits

Indiana senator says partisan bickering drove him out of politics

(Newser) - Evan Bayh won’t seek reelection, he announced today, saying he was sick of the partisan rancor in Washington. “My decision was not motivated by political concerns,” the Indiana Democrat said in a statement. “Even in the current challenging environment, I am confident in my prospects for...

Senate Unveils $87B Jobs Bill
 Senate Unveils $87B Jobs Bill 
Feb 11, 2010 1:47 PM CST

Senate Unveils $87B Jobs Bill

But vote will have to wait because of snow

(Newser) - Senate Democrats revealed their long-awaited $87 billion jobs bill today, but thanks to the snow, lawmakers may not get around to voting on it for a while. The bill calls for a combination of tax breaks for businesses and construction projects to boost employment, and has the support of two...

Scott Brown Writing Memoir
 Scott Brown Writing Memoir 
Feb 10, 2010 11:32 AM CST

Scott Brown Writing Memoir

New senator will write inspirational book with collaborator

(Newser) - Republican golden boy Scott Brown plans to add another job title to his resume: author. The newly minted senator from Massachusetts has a book deal, pending approval by the Senate Ethics Committee. “He will tell his story in a book in hopes of providing insight and encouragement to others,...

Showdown Looms as Abused Filibuster Frays Senate Tempers

GOB blocks routine nomination, has Dems eying reform options

(Newser) - Last night's GOP filibuster of a routine nomination to the National Labor Relation Board left Democrats livid, and considering reforms to stop a filibuster-happy GOP from crippling the Senate. "I'm in my thirty-sixth year. I've never seen anything like it," Sen. Pat Leahy told the Huffington Post . Leahy...

Schumer's Wall Street Donors Look for Revenge
Schumer's
Wall Street
Donors Look
for Revenge
analysis
Feb 9, 2010 5:57 PM CST

Schumer's Wall Street Donors Look for Revenge

Which might explain Harold Ford's run

(Newser) - Chuck Schumer is making enemies in high places among "his wealthiest and most powerful constituents," writes Chris Smith. These Wall Street honchos have long poured money into Schumer's campaign coffers, but now they think he's not doing enough to protect them from regulation attempts. “Chuck says, ‘...

Democrats Fault Rahm Emanuel on Health Care

Many believe his inexperience in Senate maneuvering stalled bill

(Newser) - Democrats in Congress think Rahm Emanuel’s lack of Senate experience slowed health care reform legislation to a death crawl. Liberals and centrists have different complaints, but agree that the White House chief of staff’s time in the House did not prepare him for Senate maneuvering. “They're a...

Shelby Drops Holds on Obama Nominees

Alabama Republican says he was just trying to get the president's attention

(Newser) - Richard Shelby has decided to release the holds he's been using to block more than 70 Obama nominees in hopes of scoring two lucrative projects for his home state. The Alabama senator, who was hammered by Democrats for obstructionism, said he used the holds "to get the White House's...

Mighty America Descends Into Farce
Mighty America Descends
Into Farce
PAUL KRUGMAN
Feb 8, 2010 8:20 AM CST

Mighty America Descends Into Farce

Paralyzing GOP tactics make us look like 18th-century Poland

(Newser) - When Richard Shelby put a hold on all outstanding Obama nominees last week, it reminded Paul Krugman of 18th-century Poland. Back then, the country’s legislature was run by unanimous consent, so anyone could block any legislation by shouting, “I do not allow!” Sound familiar? The US Senate,...

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