For example, take the vote on repealing "Don't Ask." Senator Reid was in negotiations with Republicans on the procedure involved... Republicans wanted the ability to offer amendments, and Reid didn't want them to have it. Eventually he walked out of discussions and brought the bill up for a vote. It failed.
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/12/09/5619090-key-vote-on-dont-ask-dont-tell-repeal-fails
A key procedural vote on the bill containing a repeal of the military's Don't Ask Don't Tell policy failed Thursday, likely dealing a final blow to advocates who hoped to overturn the 17-year old ban on gays and lesbians serving openly in the military during this session of Congress.
Democrats needed 60 votes to advance the Defense Authorization bill for debate on the floor. The vote failed, 57-40.
Ultimately, Majority Leader Harry Reid called for the vote without having reached a procedural agreement with moderate Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who supports repeal but wanted greater openness for the process of amending and passing the bill. Collins voted aye on the measure, but other Republicans who support repeal but had voiced similar procedural concerns -- Sens. Scott Brown and Lisa Murkowski -- voted no.
Tell me again, WHO is unwilling to compromise?
The DREAM Act was also dealt a blow today, though Democrats vow to keep bringing it up.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/glennthrush/1210/Senate_tables_its_DREAM_Act_for_Houses.html
Senate Democrats voted to kill their own version of the DREAM Act on Thursday so they can consider the one passed Wednesday in the House, but final passage of the bill still seems like a long shot.
The Senate will move to the House bill "later this month," according to a joint statement Thursday afternoon from Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), who introduced the immigration bill in the Senate.
But the House bill isn't expected to survive a lame-duck vote in the Senate. Republicans have vowed to block any legislation this month that is unrelated to extending expiring tax cuts or funding the government, and Democrats don't appear to have the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster.
And last, but certainly not least, the "tax deal." Details on that are simply unavailable, even though it is pending before the Senate. No copy was made available to the press gallery, and nothing was filed online in the Senate's system prior to it being addressed. Status quo for the liberals in charge, do as much as you can in secret.
In connection with this, Washington DC political reporter Jamie Dupree tweeted the following:
When I asked a Democratic aide earlier today for text of the Obama-GOP deal, he said 'transparency is overrated'.
If you want a look at the summary of the deal that was FINALLY released, LONG after it should have been, look here:
http://blogs.ajc.com/jamie-dupree-washington-insider/2010/12/09/summary-of-tax-deal/
If you want to read the entire bill yourself, try here:
http://democrats.senate.gov/pdfs/MAT10785.pdf
So there you have it, that's what was happening on Capitol Hill yesterday. If you look at these things, especially the way the tax cut deal is being handled by the Democrats, how can you NOT conclude that the country would be better off in someone else's hands?
Governing in secret doesn't really fit in with my idea of America, you know?
0 comments:
Post a Comment