The Progress Report wrote:
Shameful Corporate Greed
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
From: The Progress Report [progress@americanprogressaction.org]
Sent: Friday, January 30, 2009 9:37 AM
To: tomc2322
Subject: Shameful Corporate Greed
CONGRESS — FLASHBACK: McCONNELL SAID STIMULUS WON’T HAVE ANY PROBLEM ‘GETTING OVER 60 VOTES’: On Wednesday, the House passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on a 244-188 vote, with every Republican voting against the legislation. Now the bill moves to the Senate for debate and a potential vote next week. The Senate version of the legislation is not entirely in sync with the House’s version.McClatchy reported last week that the Senate Finance Committee has already “added some provisions desperately sought by corporate America,” such as allowing “some
companies to reduce taxes if they buy down their debt between late 2008 and 2011.” The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups lobbied heavily for the measure.Even with these extra business provisions — which conservatives have complained are absent from the House bill — nine out of 10 Republicans on the Finance Committee voted against the draft. Just few weeks ago, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that he doesn’t think the economic recovery bill will have “any problem getting over 60 votes.” He also reportedly promised that Senate Republicans “would not filibuster against the stimulus package.” On NPR yesterday, however, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) issued a filibuster threat, saying that the recovery package would need 60 votes to pass. Will McConnell keep his word? Or will conservatives continue to block the economic recovery while advocating a return to Bushonomics?
The Democrats in the Senate have capitulated so much that the Republicans in the Seante expect it to continue. Since the cloture motion to kill a filibuster requires 60 votes, and since we only have 58 at present, then my suggestion is to bring up the nuclear option. Kill the 60 vote rule to overcome fillibuster. Lower it to 51.
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