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House Rejects Stand-Alone Unemployment Insurance Bill
June 29, 2010 - by Donny Shaw
The House today failed to pass a stand-alone bill to extend unemployment insurance benefits (H.R. 5618). The final vote was 261-155. 277 votes (a 2/3rds majority of those present and voting) were needed under the suspension of the rules procedure that was used by the Democrats in order to avoid Republican obstruction tactics.
The full roll call details are not yet available online, but I will update this post with a link as soon as they are. Full roll call details can be found here.
Republicans opposed the bill because it’s costs, approximately $34 billion, were not offset with new revenue. Since the financial crisis of 2008, Congress has routinely passed UI extension bills without offsets because benefit payments to help the unemployed are considered “emergency spending” and are not subject to pay-as-you-go rules.
The bill that was rejected today would have extended UI benefit payments, which expired in late May, until November 30, 2010. Without the extension, some 1.7 million unemployed people will lose their payment by Jul 3. Benefits for the unemployed will continue to run out at a rate of about 200,000 per week until an extension is signed into law.
This leaves Democrats with basically two options for passing an unemployment insurance extension before the July 4 recess — find a revenue offset to pay for the costs that can pass through both the Senate and the House (which may be what Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid [D, NV] is talking to Republicans about today on the Senate side), or try again in the House under normal rules and see if they can overcome Republican dilatory tactics and poison-pills to pass it with a simple majority.
UPDATE: Arthur Delaney at Huffington Post reports on the next step:
Bill cosponsor Rep. Sander Levin (D-Mich.) said Democrats will return to the measure on Wednesday, when it will face a much lower simple-majority 219-vote threshold. “It will pass,” said Levin, who added that he is coordinating with his counterparts in the Senate.
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Displaying 1-30 of 194 total comments.
This is sad so very sad. But, let us begin the campaign. My husband has been calling every senator to plead on their bill and I have emailed the President and senators. Now let us each take up the cause. Call your representatives and senators and those that aren’t yours and plead your case, the case of millions. Do it without anger.
Let’s BEGIN ?? Where have you been ??
Jenkins
NOT VOTING 17Johnson, Sam
Jordan (OH)
King (IA)
King (NY)
Kingston
Kline (MN)
Kratovil
Lamborn
Lance
Latham
Latta
Lewis (CA)
Linder
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Luetkemeyer
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Lungren, Daniel E.
Mack
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Markey (CO)
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McKeon
McMorris Rodgers
Mica
Miller (FL)
Miller (MI)
Miller, Gary
Minnick
Moran (KS)
Myrick
Neugebauer
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Nye
Olson
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Pence
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Poe (TX)
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Wittman
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-Bishop (UT)
Cao
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Engel
Griffith
Hoekstra
Kirk
McIntyre
Moore (WI)
Oberstar
Putnam
Rush
Schock
Taylor
Wamp
Woolsey
Young (AK)
Senator’s excuse for not passing is a false statement.
Read all about it:
The funding argument is even harder to swallow. I’d be more sympathetic with these new converts to fiscal responsibility if they were as enthusiastic about paying for extending $32 billion worth of special interest tax breaks as they are about funding the unemployment extension. If I understand correctly, these lawmakers insist that Congress fund every dime of added jobless aid, which nearly all analysts agree will help boost the economy. But they feel no need to pay for continuing these special interest tax breaks, which will not.
Full Story:
http://www.csmonitor.com/Money/Tax-VOX/2010/0707/Senate-struggles-with-unemployment-benefits
GOP are determined to bloc everything the President is trying to do for the USA right now. He has a vested interest, and seems to take pride in doing the best job he can while in office.
We are in trouble as long as Republican politicians continue favoring their special interest.
How can any CEO or Owner of business get anything done if half of his managers or executives stand in his way just to be defiant.
President Obama speech on CSPAN today, while in Kansas City, MO to support a future candidate. Was right on.
If you are an unemployed American, and are thinking no one understands the difficulties of being jobless. Obama speech articulated the financial and emotional struggles well. Hat’s off to the President for saying what needed to be said.
http://cspan.org/Watch/Media/2010/07/08/HP/A/35248/Pres+Obama+Remarks+at+Fundraiser+for+Missouri+Senate+Candidate+Robin
Oil & Gas Industry, history of strong influence in Washington. Individuals and political action committees affiliated with oil and gas companies have donated $238.7 MILLION to candidates and parties since the 1990 (Bush Senior term) election cycle, 75% of which has gone to REPUBLICANS…
Former oilmen George W. Bush and Dick Cheney occupied the White House for 8 yrs, the oil and gas industry could not win support for repealing bans on drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. However, Congress voted in 2008 to lift a ban on offshore drilling… Read full story: http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/indus.php?ind=E0
Drilling bans were lifted during Bush’s last months in WhiteHouse in 2008. The After consumers & transportation industry & economy felt the pain of $1-$2 price hikes of gas, during Summer 2007. It was “the straw that broke the Camel’s backs”, PUTTING USA/AMERICANS INTO TAIL SPIN.
Top 5 Contributions from Oil&Gas Industry 2009-2010:
1 Koch Industries $724,300 14% Dems, 86%Repubs
2 Exxon Mobil $548,214 13% Dems, 87% Repubs
3 Chevron Corp $516,891 18% Dems, 82% Repubs
4 Valero Energy $467,000 17% Dems, 83% Repubs
5 Marathon Oil $378,190 23% Dems, 76% Repubs
Tea Party Movement benefits from millions of dollars from conservative foundations that are derived from wealthy U.S. families and their business interests. Money flowing primarily through two conservative groups: Americans for Prosperity and FreedomWorks. FreedomWorks receives substantial funding from David Koch of Koch Industries, the largest privately-held energy company in the country, which make substantial annual donations to conservative org…
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Tea_Party_movement_funding
Letter was written to Senators:
On behalf of hundreds of thousands of FreedomWorks members nationwide, I urge you to carefully consider all aspects of H.R. 4213…
If the bill comes to a vote as currently formulated, we encourage you to vote NO, and will track the vote on our Economic Scorecard….
Signed FreedomWorks President and CEO
(FreedomWorks funds Tea Party ;)
http://www.freedomworks.org/publications/freedomworks-to-senate-remove-job-killing-taxes-fr
Tea Party favorite Sharron Angle:
If you’ve been following the ongoing Senate campaign of Nevada hopeful Sharron Angle, you know that she’s sick and tired of the long-term unemployed taking home all of those cushy unemployment benefits. Angle’s angle is that these millions of Americans are just living large on the dole and need to have their unemployment benefits terminated so that they will be motivated to go out and get a job — one of the millions of magical jobs that exist in Sharron Angle’s mind!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/30/sharron-angles-unemployme_n_631350.html
Republicans only care about one thing, their own job preservation. Reps are working hard to win November’s election with the help of Tea Party Movement (FreedomWorks) and their BIG CONTRIBUTIONS FROM SPECIAL INTEREST.
Oil&Gas Industry Contribution 2009-2010
Koch Industries $724,300 14% Dems, 86% Repubs
Kosh has made big contributions to FreedomWorks, a non-profit that funds Tea Party. These 2 organizations are putting a great deal of pressure on Senators to not support UI Ext. with stimulus that require corporations to help pay back through taxes.
Most big corporations have made record profits this year by cutting jobs long-term. They started layoffs in 2007, and putting millions of Americans on unemployment.
They created the business mantra of “DO MORE, WITH LESS”, causing today’s workforce to do more job responsibility with no more pay.
I’m fed up at this point, these politicians don’t care about the American people in the least bit. It is now time to “lose our minds”, and threaten the livelihood of these Senators and their families, why not, they don’t care about us or our families! I have found the addresses of the homes of the Senators that represent my state, and i can’t wait too talk to Republican Senator Lugar for the state of Indiana, who repeatedly votes against a UI extension. They will all be home over their nice long weekend, go to their homes, confront them, threaten them, maybe even a good old fashion ass-beating. a few days in jail, is better than suicide people. If we can get americans to come together all across this nation against these idiots, they will feel threatened, and this bill will be passed. Believe me, these are the biggest spineless pussies you’ll ever meet, that is why they are politicians!
Politicians haven’t cared about the majority of hard working Americans for 30 years or better. They don’t care if you starve, die, lose your children, or are homeless. Just so long as it doesn’t interfere with their bank accounts. The automotive and bank bail outs weren’t done to protect the economy in America, they were passed so quickly because most of these folks own stocks in those companies. You see the gulf oil spill news every day because the rich (this includes those who own the news networks) own stock there. They don’t care about the families who will suffer for GENERATIONS. We’re all just lazy, drug crazed alcoholics to them. Power breeds corruption. Vote NO to any politician running for more than 2 terms.
Great you know it is a good idea, you’ll have free room and board in jail. Since we are going to be homeless.
QUIT PLAYING GAMES WITH THE BILL AND SIGN ALREADY AND QUIT MAKING PEOPLE STESSED OUT AND SICK
I LOST EVERYTHING AFTER KATRINA. THEN THE OIL SPILL. NOW THIS.
these are the people responsible for killing the bill
PLEASE get list – get a phone number update the list and call- if everyone takes 20 people and re posts with phone numbers or emails it will help-
these free loaders dont need ANOTHER VACATION
Aderholt
Adler (NJ)
Akin
Alexander
Austria
Bachmann
Bachus
Baird
Barrett (SC)
Bartlett
Barton (TX)
Bean
Berry
Biggert
Blackburn
Blunt
Boehner
Bonner
Boozman
Boustany
Brady (TX)
Bright
Broun (GA)
Brown (SC)
Brown-Waite, Ginny
Buchanan
Burgess
Burton (IN)
Buyer
Calvert
Camp
Campbell
Cantor
Carter
Cassidy
Chaffetz
Childers
Coble
Coffman (CO)
Cole
Conaway
Cooper
Crenshaw
Culberson
Davis (KY)
Djou
Donnelly (IN)
Dreier
Duncan
Emerson
Fallin
Flake
Fleming
Forbes
Fortenberry
Foxx
Franks (AZ)
Frelinghuysen
Gallegly
Garrett (NJ)
Gingrey (GA)
Gohmert
Goodlatte
Granger
Graves (GA)
Graves (MO)
Guthrie
Hall (TX)
Harper
Hastings (WA)
Hensarling
Herger
Herseth Sandlin
Hill
Hunter
Inglis
Issa
I really and truly do not think that these Representatives (Either in the House or the Senate) care at all and will be moved or bothered by phone calls and emails and the like. I am not telling people to not not get involved and do these things if you feel led to do it. But I am just saying that these BASTARDS and BITCHES in Congress have no heart and no concern for the unemployed and those less fortunate than them. It ANGERS me to no end to see these DIRTY EVIL POLITICAL GAMES going on in Washington while over a million people go without their basic and MUCH NEEDED income….
what are they doing? People need this money.
What is the government doing? People need this money.
this has made me physically ill!!!!! i am completely at the end of my sanity!!!! my chilldren are better off w/out me…im worth more dead than alive!!!!!!
desperatentx I understand where your coming from, but your children, would want you not the money. Keep your chin up, hopefully in time things will get better, my husband is unemployed as well and we have a 2 year old, we had to move back in with my parents for now, and it has been very trying. So I understand the situation your in, but one thing no one can take from you is your family! At the end of the day they have you and to them thats all that matters! I hope the best for you and your family!
kgarman thank you so much for caring…im a 43 yr single mom of two still at home and im looking at foreclosure as we speak. theres been many years ive worked two jobs so that my children didnt look like the disfunctional family that we were. i had so much pride in myself for being strong and able to provide. to be there and come to where im at now…i dont even know how to function anymore…i feel so much shame! i just wished these rich guys would care a little bit. im sorry youre in the same situation but know that i pray many times a day for all of us! i hope you have a better afternoon. thanks again!
I feel the same despair. And sadly, we all have to come to terms with the fact that for the majority of the Republican Party, they do not care. This is a chess game and who can win in November and oust Obama next Presidency. I would encourage each and every one of you to make sure you are registered to vote, since you have moved, and vote Democrat in Nov. They aren’t perfect, but they sure as heck look a lot better than Republicans, who now want to raise retirement age to 70.
amelie it is a shame that one party does something better than the other so we thought huh?? so which is the lesser of the two evils? we’re left somewhat lost!!!
desperatentx,
My husband and I are in the same position. I lost my job a year and a half ago and he lost his job a year ago. We are living day to day waiting for the bank to come and let us know that they are going to foreclose on our house. Our furnace broke and I cannot afford to have it fixed. My husband and I don’t have health insurance because we were told that we make too much money on unemployment to qualify. Good thing my kids do have the state health insurance. I suffer from depression and we have a child who was just diagnosed with bi-polar disorder. It has been a very tough time, so I know exactly how you feel. Just know that you are not alone. Your kids need you. They need your strength. No matter how hard it gets, your kids will always be there for you to give you unconditional love. Please, please do not think about ending your life. You are worth so much to them. Things will get better. They have to get better.
wnygirl im sorry that you are in the same situation. i know what you mean when you say you make too much money to get health insurance which i think is utterly ridiculous. but yes lets be grateful our kids do qualify. sounds like youve been hit with all kinds other things! i have kept us all in prayer and will continue too. even if we do get jobs i will pray that we can stay employed as long as we can. may God bless you and your family!!
desperatentx, thank you for your prayers. We all have to stick together. No matter how hard life gets or the days in which we do not want to get out of bed, there is always tomorrow. We need to wake up everyday with a smile on our face – hoping that “today” is the day!! I will keep you in my thoughts as well. :)
Well I feel like you!desperatntx. But see Im sick of waiting Im going to rob B.O.A. they own my morgage and they are forclosing on me. Atleast i die trying or end up in jail with a s square meals.
fight the foreclosure!!!!!!!!!!!
tweety65 PLEASE PLEASE tell me how to fight the foreclosure!