House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) told reporters Monday afternoon, that the House will not take up the Senate’s highway bill.
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Prior to the vote, Sen. That bill doesn’t include a re-authorization of the Ex-Im Bank, something many conservatives in the chamber are hesitant to support. The House has passed a different plan, one without an Export-Import Bank renewal, putting pressure on both chambers to consider a short-term extension. All four U.S. senators from Missouri and Illinois voted for the plan, backed by Democrats and mainstream Republicans. Orin Hatch, R-Utah, rebuked Cruz for accusing McConnell of lying by reading a provision from Rule 19 regarding senate decorum: “No Senator in debate shall, directly or indirectly, by any form of words impute to another Senator or to other Senators any conduct or motive unworthy or unbecoming a Senator”. Ted Cruz for harshly criticizing Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, an extraordinary display of intraparty division played out live on the Senate floor.
“The Senate floor has … become a place where senators have singled out colleagues by name to attack them in personal terms and to impugn their character”, Hatch said. “We serve the people, not our own egos”, Hatch said.
In particular, Cruz was prevented from offering amendments that would stop Obama’s immigration actions and halt the emerging nuclear deal with Iran unless Tehran frees U.S. hostages and recognizes Israel. McConnell, sitting at his desk, turned around and peered at Cruz, who looked stunned at what had just happened. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, second from right, and Sen.
At issue: Cruz on Friday accused Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell – a Cornyn ally – of telling a “flat-out lie” to Senate Republicans over movement of legislation related to an obscure, controversial federal agency called the Export-Import Bank.
“Thanks to the sequencing of the votes we just locked in, Republicans will have the opportunity to resurrect that Obamacare amendment later on in the process, and put it back before the Senate in a manner that only requires a simple-majority vote.”
“It consisted of the majority leader and minority leader denying members the right to have votes on their amendments and indeed the ability to even have a roll call vote”.
Boxer, responding to McCarthy’s comments said the Senate would continue to pressure the House to move quickly to pass the long-term bill.
“They’re making points and running for president”, he told E&E Daily.
“I’m prepared to use every Senate rule at my disposal to force my colleagues on record whether they like it or not”, Sen. “We’re going to have a chance to examine it and debate it and review it”.
Around 20 senators of both parties were on the floor watching some of the speeches. Thom Tillis (R-NC) said.
The Senate’s version of the highway bill, which is on monitor to cross later within the week, units coverage and authorizes transportation packages for six years, although with funding for less than three of these years.
To be sure, there will be furious politicking on Capitol Hill this week to get some kind of highway legislation passed- be it a multi-year highway bill or a multi-month extension- by Friday, when the funding authority for federal highway projects runs out… yet again.
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While the Highway Trust Fund is supposed to be supported exclusively by federal fuel tax receipts, a combination of factors – including improved vehicle fuel efficiency and congressionally set spending demands – mean that the fund has needed repeated bailouts since 2008.
