Today in Washington D. C. - Jan 30, 2008

On The Floor: Senate reconvened at 10 AM today. Senate Democrats blocked cloture on the Intelligence Committee’s bipartisan FISA revision and the House has recessed for the rest of the week, the House and Senate passed a 15 day extension of the current FISA law (H.R. 5104), Protect America Act,yesterday. Senate negotiations on the FISA bill (S. 2248) and amendments to it are expected to continue. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said, “The most important thing for us to do right now is to get the bill out of the Senate. We’ve got plenty of time to do that. We’ve been dealing with this for six months.”

The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold an oversight hearing on the Justice Department beginning at 10 AM, with Attorney General Michael Mukasey testifying.

The House passed its version of the economic stimulus package yesterday, by a vote of 385-35. That bill is the result of a compromise between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Republican Leader John Boehner, and Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson. The Senate Finance Committee will mark up Sen. Max Baucus’ (D-MT) economic stimulus proposal at 2:30 PM today.

From Senate & News Sources: Addressing FISA, White House spokeswoman Jeanie Mamo said of the extension, “While we maintain that Congress has had sufficient time to conclude its work, we have indicated to congressional leaders that we will accommodate this request so that Congress can live up to its commitment to passing a bill that gives the intelligence community the tools they need to protect the nation. Congress should complete its work before departing for its next break.”

On the economic front: While the House quickly passed its compromise economic stimulus bill, Senate Democrats are dragging their feet, despite earlier calls from Democrats to pass it “without delay.” Several news outlets are reporting today that Senate Democrats, led by Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus, are jeopardizing the stimulus package by delaying it and attempting to load it up with new spending:

• The Hill reports, “tinkering by [Senate] lawmakers threatens the legislation.”
• The Politico writes, “Potentially crippling roadblocks in the Senate could mar Tuesday’s House passage of an economic stimulus package….”
• The New York Times, “Senate Democrats forged ahead with their own, more expensive plan despite a rising chorus of warnings from the White House and Speaker Nancy Pelosi that they risk delaying much-needed help for the economy and could plunge the nation too far in debt.”
• The Washington Post notes, “growing concern that the Senate would make changes that, at best, would force the package into House-Senate negotiations and, at worst, would court a presidential veto.”
• Roll Call noted that Senate Democrats seem to be going out on a limb with the Baucus proposal, even as they squabble over who should get tax rebates. “Senate Democrats grew increasingly isolated in their push for an expanded stimulus package Tuesday, even as they faced an internal revolt over a proposal by Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) to give tax rebates to millionaires and billionaires.”

If Democrats truly want to pass a package to aid economic growth and stimulate the economy, they should focus on speed, not spending.

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