Senator Jim Bunning (R-Kentucky) ended his objection to a $10 billion Senate bill to extend emergency unemployment benefits.The Senate will be able to vote on the bill tonight.
The NY Times reports that Bunning's turnaround "came after [his] fellow Republicans began to air their own concerns about how the Senate blockade had the potential to damage their political brand while also having a direct impact on their constituents." What's Bunning getting out of this? The Wall Street Journal explains that now "Bunning (R., Ky.), who had complained that the $10 billion bill was not paid for, [can] offer an amendment that would fund the legislation by rescinding a tax credit for a paper manufacturing byproduct. His amendment was expected to fail later Tuesday night."—It did, with 43 Senators voting for it—"After that vote, Mr. Bunning was set to lift his objection to the underlying bill, which was expected to pass."
Bunning said, "I hope Senate Democrats tonight vote for their own pay-fors and show Americans that they are committed to fiscal discipline. I will be watching them closely and checking off the hypocrites one by one." Still, a few other Republicans made it clear they didn't agree with his earlier decision to stop the bill: Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas) said, "This is one senator. This doesn't represent the position of the [Republican] caucus," while Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) said, "I'm not trying to justify it. I would not do that myself... I don't revel in anybody suffering without unemployment compensation."
Bunning's objection caused unemployment benefits to expire for 100,000 people yesterday, as well as for numerous federal transportation projects to be halted and 2,000 workers to be furloughed for the day.
