Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
National Journal's CongressDailyAM
September 17, 2008
Senate Democrats narrowly succeeded Tuesday in invoking cloture on the FY09 defense authorization bill, lining the Pentagon policy measure up for a final vote expected tonight.
The bill had languished for a week amid spats over earmarks and other issues, raising questions from both parties about whether the Senate could complete work on it by the end of the month.
But 13 Republicans, including several in tight re-election battles, joined Democrats to muster 61 votes in favor of cutting off debate on the measure, which has passed Congress every year since at least 1961.
Sen. John Warner, R-Va., the former Armed Services Committee chairman who is retiring at the end of this Congress, was among those Republicans voting for cloture.
Other Republicans included incumbents in tough races: Sens. Norm Coleman of Minnesota, John Sununu of New Hampshire, Gordon Smith of Oregon, Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina, and Defense Appropriations Subcommittee ranking member Ted Stevens of Alaska.
Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Roger Wicker of Mississippi -- two Armed Services Committee Republicans who are also on the ballot in November -- also voted for cloture.
Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin and Warner worked Tuesday to add dozens of amendments to a manager's package that already numbered roughly 90 amendments by mid-day.
Levin is hoping to wrap as many amendments as possible into that package, but he acknowledged Tuesday night the Senate might vote today on a contentious amendment from Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., addressing earmarks in the committee report language.
DeMint, who has blocked approval of other amendments to the bill until he is guaranteed a vote, wants to strike a provision that gives earmarks outlined in report language the force of law. He has called the language an end-run around an executive order directing federal agencies to ignore earmarks in report language.
Levin has called DeMint's amendment an "abdication of the power of the purse" because it would strip the authorization bill of all its detailed funding charts, which include money for programs requested by the administration.
"If you strike it, what are you left with?" Levin said. The bill itself lists only the totals for each major account, not spending levels for programs or projects.
During floor debate Tuesday, Warner offered a compromise to shift funding tables in the report language to the bill text. But Levin said changing the printed bill would take four days and ultimately jeopardize efforts to get a conference bill to the White House by the end of the month.
Levin said he is working with Warner on the final language, which might, because of the short amount of time left, require future Congresses to place funding tables in the text of the bill.
Across the Capitol, House Armed Services Committee members plan to hold a meeting Thursday to discuss conference negotiations. The House passed its authorization measure in May.
"The daunting news is that we are under an intensely tight timeline to return a conference report before the House is scheduled to adjourn next week," the committee's staff director told aides in an e-mail.
by Megan Scully
September 17, 2008
Senate Democrats narrowly succeeded Tuesday in invoking cloture on the FY09 defense authorization bill, lining the Pentagon policy measure up for a final vote expected tonight.
The bill had languished for a week amid spats over earmarks and other issues, raising questions from both parties about whether the Senate could complete work on it by the end of the month.
But 13 Republicans, including several in tight re-election battles, joined Democrats to muster 61 votes in favor of cutting off debate on the measure, which has passed Congress every year since at least 1961.
Sen. John Warner, R-Va., the former Armed Services Committee chairman who is retiring at the end of this Congress, was among those Republicans voting for cloture.
Other Republicans included incumbents in tough races: Sens. Norm Coleman of Minnesota, John Sununu of New Hampshire, Gordon Smith of Oregon, Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina, and Defense Appropriations Subcommittee ranking member Ted Stevens of Alaska.
Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Roger Wicker of Mississippi -- two Armed Services Committee Republicans who are also on the ballot in November -- also voted for cloture.
Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin and Warner worked Tuesday to add dozens of amendments to a manager's package that already numbered roughly 90 amendments by mid-day.
Levin is hoping to wrap as many amendments as possible into that package, but he acknowledged Tuesday night the Senate might vote today on a contentious amendment from Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., addressing earmarks in the committee report language.
DeMint, who has blocked approval of other amendments to the bill until he is guaranteed a vote, wants to strike a provision that gives earmarks outlined in report language the force of law. He has called the language an end-run around an executive order directing federal agencies to ignore earmarks in report language.
Levin has called DeMint's amendment an "abdication of the power of the purse" because it would strip the authorization bill of all its detailed funding charts, which include money for programs requested by the administration.
"If you strike it, what are you left with?" Levin said. The bill itself lists only the totals for each major account, not spending levels for programs or projects.
During floor debate Tuesday, Warner offered a compromise to shift funding tables in the report language to the bill text. But Levin said changing the printed bill would take four days and ultimately jeopardize efforts to get a conference bill to the White House by the end of the month.
Levin said he is working with Warner on the final language, which might, because of the short amount of time left, require future Congresses to place funding tables in the text of the bill.
Across the Capitol, House Armed Services Committee members plan to hold a meeting Thursday to discuss conference negotiations. The House passed its authorization measure in May.
"The daunting news is that we are under an intensely tight timeline to return a conference report before the House is scheduled to adjourn next week," the committee's staff director told aides in an e-mail.
by Megan Scully