Thursday, July 1, 2010

Ben Nelson Strikes Again


He's up for reelection in 2012, which gives us time to find someone that can take this asshole down: (TPM)
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) last night prevented his fellow Democrats from finally passing legislation to extend needed unemployment insurance benefits to out of work Americans. It was the third time the legislation, which has been repeatedly pared down and reshaped in the hunt for votes, has failed to overcome a filibuster. But it was the first time that success or failure rested on a single deciding vote. And because Nelson, the most conservative Democrat in the Senate, joined Republicans and blocked the bill, it will likely not pass until mid-July, after the Senate returns from Independence Day recess. By then Robert Byrd's replacement will be seated, and Dems will have the votes they need to pass their jobs bill.
. . .

That's what happened last night. With the death of Robert Byrd, Democrats have 58 voting members. Last night, they were joined by Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME). That would have brought them to 60, breaking the filibuster...but Nelson said no. He's opposed the legislation repeatedly on the grounds that it's not completely paid for (though emergency extensions of unemployment benefits are often not paid for). He brought Democrats down to 59 votes -- one short of the supermajority they needed -- and because of that, Reid changed his vote, drawing the total down to 58.

A day earlier, Nelson released a long statement explaining his repeated opposition to the bill.

"The bill has been revised several times already and each time the deficit spending was less. Tough choices are possible and necessary to not add to the deficit," Nelson said. "Some also say we need more emergency spending now to keep the recovery going. But in my view it could jeopardize the recovery and would add to our already enormous deficit, likely to be around $1.4 trillion for the second year in a row.... Congress should provide additional unemployment benefits but not as a bailout to the states that worsens the deficit and passes the bills onto our children."
It's great that he mentions children, since long term unemployment hurts children more than just about anyone else. With Blanche Lincoln out the Senate in November, it looks like Ben Nelson has positioned himself nicely to take over a leadership position in the Douche Caucus.

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