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Senate Democrats Had Enough Republican Votes to Pass the Bailout
Nancy Pelosi says that Senate Republicans were "irresponsible" for opposing the auto bailout, which failed on a cloture vote last night 52 to 35.Senate Republicans' refusal to support the bipartisan legislation passed by the House and negotiated in good faith with the White House, the Senate and the automakers is irresponsible, especially at a time of economic hardship. The consequences of the Senate Republicans' failure to act could be devastating to our economy, detrimental to workers, and destructive to the American automobile industryThe problem with Pelosi's statement is that 10 Republican Senators voted with the Democrats last night, which means the Democrats could have reached 60 votes if the entire Democratic caucus voted for the bill. But eight Democrats bailed on the bailout (Reid, it should be noted, voted against it for procedural reasons, in order to bring it up for a vote again). Four Democrats voted 'nay': Baucus, Tester, Lincoln, and Reid. Four Democrats did not vote: Biden, Kennedy, Kerry, and Wyden. (And, of course, the Democrats would have another member right now if Blagojevich had sold that Senate seat before he was busted.) Does Pelosi think that these Democrats, who had the ability to pass the bailout, are "irresponsible," too? And, for that matter, why didn't she simply call them "unpatriotic"? Isn't bailing out the auto industry a better indicator of your love of country than bailing out Wall Street? Posted by: tipper 2008-12-14 |
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