Financial reform bill sent to Senate

[Joanne98]

The Senate debate over financial reform took another partisan turn Monday when the Senate Banking Committee approved legislation on a party line vote.


The vote came after Republicans on the committee revealed they would not offer any amendments to the Democratic bill during committee consideration and instead voted against the bill. It passed 13-10 and was sent to the full Senate.


The outcome — a party-line vote on the Democratic bill — is no different than expected before the GOP decision, but for some the move sent a stronger message of opposition on the part of Republicans, indicating they don’t even see it as worth the effort to improve the bill via amendments.


But it’s too soon to tell what the GOP strategy means for the fate of the bill. Key senators on both sides of the aisle continued to express optimism that a deal could be worked out before the final vote on the Senate floor. Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) even suggested to reporters after the committee vote that the decision to forgo amendments could increase the chances of getting a deal.


“I do not view today’s markup as the end of the road but, rather, just another step in the process,” Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the top Republican on the Banking Committee, said in his opening statement Monday. He insisted that just because a bipartisan deal has so far eluded senators doesn’t mean that an agreement will remain out of reach.



Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0310/34829.html#ixzz0iwqEALV4

[pampango]

1. Financial reform, immigration reform, EFCA, DADT, keep the pressure on the republicans

leading up to November. They and their teabagger buddies are reeling right now. Keep them on the run.