Senate – News Stories About Senate - Page 38

Senate Kills Botox Tax,
Adds Tanning Tax

Dec 19, 2009 11:42 AM CST

Senate Kills Botox Tax, Adds Tanning Tax

It could soon cost more to get that bronzed look indoors

(Newser) - The Senate bill on health care reform has good news and bad for those who use artificial means to look better in the mirror. The legislation scraps a proposed 5% tax on cosmetic surgery but adds a 10% tax on indoor tanning beds that deliver UV rays. "The only...

Ben Nelson
Says He's In,
Giving Reid
His 60 Votes

senate health care scramble

Dec 19, 2009 9:03 AM CST

Ben Nelson Says He's In, Giving Reid His 60 Votes

Reid unveils final version of bill, including concessions on abortion

(Newser) - The last Democratic holdout on health care reform came into the tent this morning, as Ben Nelson said he will vote for the bill. "We're there," Sen. Kent Conrad told the Washington Post as he headed into a meeting to announce the deal, and Nelson, asked if he...

Kennedy's Widow:
Don't Let Ted Down
on Health Care

Dec 19, 2009 8:29 AM CST

Kennedy's Widow: Don't Let Ted Down on Health Care

Please finish 'the work of his life,' writes Victoria Kennedy

(Newser) - In an impassioned plea to Democratic senators threatening to vote against the health care reform bill, Victoria Reggie Kennedy begs them not to squander this opportunity because the bill isn't all they would like it to be. "Ted often said that we can't let the perfect be the enemy...

Senate Passes Pentagon Spending, Jobless Bill

Dec 19, 2009 8:08 AM CST

Senate Passes Pentagon Spending, Jobless Bill

Now they can go back to bickering over health care

(Newser) - The Senate, meeting in the midst of a snow storm, this morning passed a critical budget bill that combines money for the Pentagon with additional help for the jobless. The 88-10 vote means the bill, passed by the House earlier this week, will go to President Obama, and the Senate...

Ben Nelson Deal
May Give Reid 60 Votes

Dec 19, 2009 6:26 AM CST

Ben Nelson Deal May Give Reid 60 Votes

Bargaining session said to have yielded agreement on abortion

(Newser) - Senate Dems appear within reach of the 60 votes needed to pass their health care bill after a final burst of deadline bargaining with holdout Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska. Emerging from marathon talks with Harry Reid and White House officials late last night, Nelson said "real progress" had...

Franken
Won't Let
Lieberman
Speak

'i object'

Dec 17, 2009 5:44 PM CST

Franken Won't Let Lieberman Speak

He rejects request for extra time on the Senate floor

(Newser) - Sit down and zip it, Joe. That's essentially what Al Franken told Joe Lieberman to do today, albeit couched in polite Senate speak. When Lieberman used up his allotted time speaking on health care, he asked for unanimous consent for a bit more time. That's usually a formality. It just...

Nelson Rejects Abortion Deal

Dec 17, 2009 4:54 PM CST

Nelson Rejects Abortion Deal

Democratic holdout says language 'isn't sufficient'

(Newser) - Ben Nelson says compromise language offered to prevent federal money from covering abortions "isn't sufficient" in the current Senate bill. The Nebraska Democrat is one of the holdouts Harry Reid must win over to get 60 votes, but Nelson told a radio station today that he's still not on...

Schumer Lands
in Hot Water
Over 'Bitch'
Comment

Dec 17, 2009 11:29 AM CST

Schumer Lands in Hot Water Over 'Bitch' Comment

Flight attendant made him hang up on Harry Reid

(Newser) - Chuck Schumer set off an unfortunate cascade of events Sunday when he bridled at a flight attendant’s request that he turn off his cell phone so a plane could take off and then muttered that she was a “bitch.” As the story circulated around the Beltway, it...

Nate Silver Battles Bill Killers

Dem-on-Dem Action

Dec 17, 2009 11:16 AM CST

Nate Silver Battles Bill Killers

Left-wing blogdom 'fracturing' over health care reform

(Newser) - Nate Silver launched into possibly the dorkiest blog feud ever last night, getting into a lengthy, heated policy debate with liberal bloggers who want to kill the Senate’s health care bill. Silver argues that Democrats will never have a better chance to pass reform, and that it would “...

2009:
The Year
Jackasses
Took Over

OPINION

Dec 17, 2009 6:19 AM CST

2009: The Year Jackasses Took Over

Hyper-partisanship rewarded as decorum departs Congress

(Newser) - Forget about donkeys and elephants, 2009 was the year of the political jackass, writes David Kuhn. The usual corruption and infidelities were on display, but that's nothing new. What is new are hyper-partisan, outburst-prone boors like Republican Joe "You Lie" Wilson and Democratic provocateur Rep. Alan Grayson—who "...

Senate's Reading
Marathon Ends Early

parliamentary maneuvers

Dec 16, 2009 4:12 PM CST

Senate's Reading Marathon Ends Early

Sanders pulls amendment after GOP delaying tactic

(Newser) - Pity the poor Senate clerk's office, which finds itself at the center of parliamentary games. Staffers spent nearly three hours today reading aloud an amendment—a move forced by Republican Tom Coburn to gum up the works—before independent Bernie Sanders angrily yanked it back. They had gotten only to...

Coburn Forces Hours-Long Reading to Stall Debate

SENATE games

Dec 16, 2009 1:25 PM CST

Coburn Forces Hours-Long Reading to Stall Debate

Parliamentary maneuver could take 8 hours or more

(Newser) - The Senate GOP has stalled floor debate on the health care reform bill with a demand that the entirety of a 767-page amendment be read aloud, a process that could take between 8 and 12 hours. The amendment’s sponsor, Independent Bernie Sanders, called the move by Tom Coburn a...

Take It Easy, Liberals,
This Bill Is Still Worthy

opinion

Dec 16, 2009 11:07 AM CST

Take It Easy, Liberals, This Bill Is Still Worthy

Kevin Drum: Even without the public option, it will make a difference

(Newser) - Kevin Drum wants his fellow liberals to "wake up and smell the decaf" on health care reform. Stop whining about the fading public option and keep things in perspective. "The bill in front of us—messy, incomplete, and replete with bribes to every interest group imaginable—is still...

Howard Dean:
Kill the Bill

health care reform

Dec 15, 2009 4:30 PM CST

Howard Dean: Kill the Bill

Lieberman's moves have made it worthless, he says

(Newser) - President Obama may be pushing for Senate Democrats to keep working on health care reform, but Howard Dean has had enough. The former party chairman says Joe Lieberman's success at weeding out the Medicare buy-in—which itself had replaced the public option—makes the bill worthless.

Dems Still Need Lieberman on Other Issues

analysis

Dec 15, 2009 2:00 PM CST

Dems Still Need Lieberman on Other Issues

White House working with him on climate change, gay benefits

(Newser) - Joe Lieberman’s health care gadfly act may have Democrats royally cheesed off, but they’re still working with the Connecticut senator on other important legislation. White House officials regularly meet with Lieberman on climate change, sources tell Talking Points Memo , as well as several bills in the Homeland Security...

Stop Citing Jewish Ethics Against Health Reform!

rabbis to lieberman:

Dec 15, 2009 10:48 AM CST

Stop Citing Jewish Ethics Against Health Reform!

Senator backed Medicare buy-in 3 months ago, and still should

(Newser) - “A hallmark of Judaism is disputation,” writes David Gibson, and it shows—Joe Lieberman is in a pitched battle with his home state coreligionists over health care reform. Rabbis from across Connecticut, in tones both dulcet and shrill, are lobbying the senator to drop his opposition to anything...

Lieberman's Sabbath Walk
Breaks GOP Filibuster

Dec 12, 2009 12:55 PM CST

Lieberman's Sabbath Walk Breaks GOP Filibuster

Spending bill clears hurdle when Joe casts final vote

(Newser) - Senate Democrats turned back a Republican effort to block a final vote on a huge end-of-year spending bill that gives most federal agencies a generous budget boost. The 60-34 vote largely along party lines met the minimum threshold to end the filibuster by Republicans, who say the $447 billion measure...

Harry Reid's No. 1 Priority
Is Harry Reid

dana Milbank

Dec 12, 2009 9:53 AM CST

Harry Reid's No. 1 Priority Is Harry Reid

A Senate majority leader needs to 'think bigger'

(Newser) - The Senate may be dealing with weighty issues like health care reform, but its majority leader's biggest concern is his own political skin, writes Dana Milbank. Harry Reid's selfish focus on re-election is getting in the way of his larger duties, and it's time Democrats woke up to this reality....

Obama Praises
Public-Option
Compromise

Dec 9, 2009 4:37 PM CST

Obama Praises Public-Option Compromise

President praises deal, says it will still provide more choice

(Newser) - President Obama applauded Senate Democrats for yielding on the public option in favor of a "creative framework" for health care reform that could attract wider support. "I support this effort, especially since it's aimed at increasing choice and competition and lowering cost," Obama said at a health...

Meet Orrin Hatch,
Hanukkah Songwriter

YES, THAT SENATOR DEPT

Dec 9, 2009 11:02 AM CST

Meet Orrin Hatch, Hanukkah Songwriter

The Utah Mormon is also a writer of love songs

(Newser) - Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch is a prolific author of love songs and Christian spirituals, but it took about 10 years for Jeffrey Goldberg to cajole the “philo-Semite” Mormon into writing a Hanukkah song. Goldberg first floated the idea for “Eight Days of Hanukkah” as an aside in an...