“This bill hardly represents my preferred method for funding the government”, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Tuesday.
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A person close to Cruz, who requested anonymity to speak freely, said the senator will vote no on the continuing resolution because “he will not support a CR with funding for Planned Parenthood“, but he will not attempt to throw up any procedural roadblocks that could slow its passage. If Boehner had tried to move on the immigration measure past year, over the objections of most members of his conference, they would have removed him from his position (as Toobin acknowledges), and nearly certainly blocked the bill anyway. He added that he hopes to be able to “settle on a top line for both years” – fiscal years 2016 and 2017 – so that next year Congress can return to the regular process of passing spending bills for various agencies under an agreed-upon overall budget target. As with Boehner, they accuse the Kentucky Republican of persistently backing away from fights – despite the fact that Republicans are handcuffed by having just 54 Senate votes, well short of the necessary 60 to end Senate Democratic delaying tactics and the 67 votes it takes to override Obama vetoes.
Congressional leaders and the White House have started broader talks to work on a longer-term budget deal. “Given the number of critical deadlines that are before us, it is essential that serious, bipartisan negotiations commence well before the December 11th date”, said Drew Hamill, spokesman for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
It’s not clear, however, what role Boehner will play in the negotiations since he’s announced he’ll be resigning at the end of October. A large majority of Republicans voted against the measure, which did not meet conservatives’ demands to cut off money to women’s healthcare provider Planned Parenthood amid an abortion controversy. “Why, then, does it matter if we have a Republican or Democrat House or Senate?”
U.S. Congressman Charlie Dent said, “I don’t believe there will be a government shutdown, although accidents do happen around here”. “The Democrats are objecting to my speaking further”.
What’s your message to the new Speaker of the House?
There have already been volumes written about how Boehner, although a frightful leader and the worst of the worst of corporate Republicans, will be replaced by someone much, much worse than he is.
Americans won when President Obama signed a stop-gap spending bill that prevented a shutdown of the federal government.
The Senate is expected to approve the bill today and send it to the House.
Democrats’ want sequestration – legislatively mandated budget caps – lifted for domestic programs. It will also have the effect of turning off Independents and moderate Republicans, who will either flip their vote to a Democrat, or abstain from voting altogether. However, no one could have foreseen just how critically important it would turn out to be. “There’s a high level of frustration out there with what a lot of people perceive to be lack of accomplishment”, but he said voters “ought to be directing their fire at President Obama”. There’s no indication that the conservatives pushing to defund Planned Parenthood this year are going to give up by December – why would they, when a few pundits see Boehner’s resignation as a victory for them?
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The House has set up a procedure allowing members to vote on the measure the same day it arrives from the Senate.
