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Reid threatens to call off August recess |
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By Manu Raju
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Posted: 06/29/07 12:44 PM [ET] |
Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) Friday threatened to scrap the Senate’s August recess until senators resolve disputes holding up conference negotiations over two bills central to the Democratic agenda.
The bills, which would implement the recommendations made by the bipartisan 9/11 Commission and overhaul lobbying and ethics rules, have been stalled by Senate Republicans, who have demanded assurances over the final contents of the legislation.
The measures were cornerstones of the Democratic 2006 campaign platform, and Reid said lawmakers would clear the measures even if it meant working on Capitol Hill for Congress’s annual August recess.
“If it means our recess is going to go away, we’re going to complete those two pieces of legislation,” Reid said at a Friday morning news conference.
Reid and Republican leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) appeared close Thursday to naming Senate conferees to the ethics and lobbying overhaul bill, but Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) objected, demanding that stringent earmark disclosure rules would remain in the final bill.
The objection sparked sharp exchanges on the Senate floor Thursday, with Reid saying that doing so would allow any senator to hijack legislation in order to get his or her favored provisions in final legislation. But DeMint said that Democrats were not committed to real reform of the congressional practice of earmarking funds to lawmakers’ constituencies.
Meanwhile, the 9/11 bill has been held up over a series of objections Republicans have voiced over provisions in the bill. Amid those concerns, Reid appears to be relenting on the Democrats’ plans to include a provision allowing airport screeners collective bargaining rights. But yesterday, Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) objected to moving to House-Senate negotiations, saying he wanted to ensure a final conference report including a system to audit homeland security grants.
On Friday, Reid excoriated Republicans for holding up progress on the bills.
“They keep coming up with diversionary, dilatory, unreasonable demands,” Reid said.
If Reid follows through on his threat to delay the August recess, it could create problems for senators seeking the presidential nominations of their respective parties, who have planned busy campaigning months to boost their candidacies in early primary states.
Reid is not afraid to wield threats over disrupting travel schedules, threatening most recently to delay the July 4th recess if the Senate did not move swiftly enough on immigration and energy bills. But after passing the energy bill and killing the immigration bill, senators head for a one-week recess starting Monday.
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