Pennsylvania Avenue
Nov. 19, 12 a.m.
“The mood of America is glum. Two-thirds of the public is dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country” and voters’ anti-incumbent mood is approaching 1994 and 2006 levels, when control of Congress changed hands.
Congress Inside Out
Nov. 18, 12 a.m.
As a state Senator in Illinois and as a U.S. Senator, Barack Obama built a reputation as a process reformer. He worked hard and had some notable success on ethics and lobbying reform. He also advocated good ideas on campaign and election reform, and brought more transparency to government, including his achievement — with unlikely Senate ally Tom Coburn (Okla.), a conservative Republican — of getting disclosure posted online of all entities receiving federal funds.
Procedural Politics
Nov. 17, 12 a.m.
I am often asked by foreign visitors to explain the differences between the House and Senate. My first reaction is to offer up a “night and day” comparison, but that would put them in the same galaxy and time zone. A more accurate analogy would be that the House and the Senate are as different as light and molasses, for they truly do operate at different speeds and in different universes. They’re not even parallel universes because quite often they’re working at cross purposes (is there such a thing as perpendicular universes?).
A Question of Ethics
Nov. 10, 12 a.m.
Q: I am an in-house lobbyist for a major health care provider that is providing an H1N1 flu vaccine clinic this Saturday. It is widely expected that there will be an enormous turnout. A Representative called me today and asked if there is any way that her family could receive the vaccine a day early. She has two young children and wants to make sure they receive the vaccine before we run out. We really do not want to say no, as we hate the idea of the Representative possibly spending all day waiting in line with her family, let alone not getting the vaccine at all. I discussed this with my supervisor, and the plan we came up with is to allow the Representative to come the day before the vaccine clinic. This way the vaccine will not be a “gift,” and we will not be violating any rules. Is that right?
Fiscal Fitness
Nov. 17, 12 a.m.
One of the things you learn quickly when you spend any time on Capitol Hill is that you never use the phrase “omnibus appropriation” in mixed company. In this case, “mixed company” means any group of people that includes a current or former Member or staffer of the House or Senate Appropriations committees.
Heard on theHill
State of the Art
Nov. 19, 12 a.m.
Sen. Al Franken’s unique skill of drawing an accurate map of the United States from memory is pretty darn impressive, but it looks like the Minnesota Democrat has some emerging competition on the artistic front.
RoadMap
Reid’s Health Bill Push May Spell Weekend Work
Nov. 17, 12 a.m.
If you’ve got a dog in the health care reform fight, you might want to keep this weekend open for another nail-biter vote — this time in the Senate.
CampusNotebook
Serving Early Birds
Nov. 18, 12 a.m.
Members and staffers who can’t wait until next week for a plate of turkey and mashed potatoes can head to the Senate cafeterias on Thursday for a Thanksgiving spread.
MorningBusiness
Byrd Flies to New Heights
Nov. 18, 12 a.m.
Two days before his 92nd birthday, Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) will be feted on the Senate floor today as the longest-serving Member of Congress.
Face Time
Updated: Nov. 3
Find out which Members of Congress have appeared most often on Sunday news shows in 2009.
Senate
Senate Phones Disrupted by Deluge of Calls
Nov. 20, 2:07 p.m.
A deluge of phone calls is causing problems with the Senate’s voice mail system, prompting officials to ask staffers to regularly delete their messages.
GOP Senators Warn Democratic Centrists Against Voting to Begin Debate
Nov. 20, 1:15 p.m.
Senate Republicans kicked off an offensive heading into Saturday’s health care reform vote on Friday, warning vulnerable Democrats against voting to begin debate on the measure and challenging the bill’s price tag.
Nelson Will Vote to Begin Debate on Health Bill
Nov. 20, 12:44 p.m.
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) ended weeks of speculation by announcing Friday that he will vote to start debate on the Senate’s health care reform measure when the roll is called Saturday evening.
Restaurants to Open for Senate on Saturday
Nov. 20, 12:15 p.m.
Senators and staffers stuck on Capitol Hill on Saturday won’t go hungry: Officials announced Friday that they are keeping two restaurants open.
Byrd Celebrates 92nd Birthday After Setting Record
Nov. 20, 12:11 p.m.
Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) celebrated his 92nd birthday Friday, two days after setting the record as the longest-serving Member of Congress.
Ethics Admonishes Burris Over Senate Appointment
Nov. 20, 11:29 a.m.
The Senate Ethics Committee publicly admonished Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.) on Friday for discrediting himself and the Senate in the way he sought appointment to the seat of now-President Barack Obama.
CRS Report Shows Most Bills Subject to Cloture Pass
Nov. 19, 10:25 p.m.
A new study of Senate voting patterns shows the chamber has approved more than 97 percent of all bills subject to a cloture motion to begin debate — a finding that could undercut Democratic efforts to paint a key health care vote on Saturday as procedural.
Doug Hampton: Money From Ensigns Was ‘Severance’
Nov. 19, 9:32 p.m.
Doug Hampton, the former top aide to Sen. John Ensign whose wife had an affair with the Nevada Republican, is alleging the nearly $100,000 that the lawmaker’s parents paid him from their personal accounts after he discovered the affair was “severance” and not a gift as Ensign has claimed.
Reid Tees Up Vote; GOP Drops Bill-Reading Plan
Nov. 19, 4:54 p.m.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Thursday afternoon set the procedural wheels in motion for a crucial vote on a major health care reform bill Saturday night at 8 p.m. and scored a coup by apparently persuading Republicans to abandon their plans to have the entire 2,074-page bill read aloud on the Senate floor.
Nelson Joins Lieberman in Threatening to Filibuster Health Bill
Nov. 19, 4:34 p.m.
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) officially joined Sen. Joe Lieberman (ID-Conn.) as the second member of the Democratic Conference to threaten a filibuster of the Senate’s health care reform bill.
CBO: House Bill Cuts Deficit More Than Senate Version
Nov. 19, 4:29 p.m.
Score one for the House, perhaps. The Congressional Budget Office revised its estimate of the House health care bill Thursday, saying it would shrink the deficit by $139 billion in the first decade, $30 billion more than earlier estimates and $9 billion more than the Senate bill unveiled Wednesday by Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).
Durbin: ‘Place Your Bets’ on 8 p.m. Health Care Vote
Nov. 19, 4:23 p.m.
Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said Thursday that Senators should expect to take their first vote on a major health care reform effort Saturday night around 8.
Senate Confirms Hamilton to 7th Circuit Court
Nov. 19, 3:45 p.m.
Senate Democrats on Thursday voted 59-39 to install David Hamilton to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Nelson: Abortion Can Be Dealt With on the Floor
Nov. 19, 1:56 p.m.
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) hinted again Thursday that he's leaning toward voting to allow Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to bring his health care bill to the floor, rejecting an argument from fellow Nebraska senator Mike Johanns (R) that such a vote was a vote for abortion rights.
Reid Confident but Won’t Yet Predict 60 Votes
Nov. 19, 1:50 p.m.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) confidently predicted Thursday that the Senate would eventually pass a health care reform measure, even as he refused to say whether he has the 60 votes necessary to bring the measure up for debate.
Pelosi Prefers Senate Abortion Language
Nov. 19, 1:18 p.m.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) rarely misses a chance to defend her chamber’s prerogative, but on one sticking point in the health care debate — abortion — she is casting her lot with the Senate.
Abortion Spotlight Shines on Ben Nelson
Nov. 19, 12:19 p.m.
Abortion language included into the Senate health care bill by Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) quickly came under attack from abortion-rights foes, who are trying to ratchet up the pressure on moderate Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) to block consideration of the bill.
Kerry’s Daughter Arrested for DUI
Nov. 19, 12:06 p.m.
Foreign Relations Chairman John Kerry’s (D-Mass.) daughter was arrested Thursday morning in Los Angeles for driving under the influence.
Lugar’s Wife Arrested for DUI
Nov. 19, 11:03 a.m.
Charlene Lugar, wife of Senate Foreign Relations ranking member Dick Lugar (R-Ind.), was arrested Wednesday night for drunken driving after a traffic accident in McLean, Va.
Official CBO Score Released: Senate Health Bill $848 Billion
Nov. 19, 7:35 a.m.
The Congressional Budget Office confirmed late Wednesday night that the Senate health care reform bill would cost about $848 billion over ten years, but upped the amount of deficit savings Democratic aides had predicted from $127 billion to $130 billion over ten years.
Durbin, Dorgan Writing Senate Jobs Bill
Nov. 19, 12 a.m.
Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Democratic Policy Committee Chairman Byron Dorgan (N.D.) have been quietly trying to write a jobs bill that the Senate can act on early next year, underscoring the renewed emphasis Congressional Democrats are putting on the economy as 2009 comes to a close.
Gitmo Still Vexing Democrats
Nov. 19, 12 a.m.
House Republicans continued Wednesday to hammer Democrats over the issue of bringing suspected terrorists from Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, onto U.S. soil for trial — and they appear to be making headway.
Republicans Complain About ‘Preliminary’ Cost of Senate Health Care Bill
Nov. 18, 9:06 p.m.
Senate Republicans roundly criticized Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D-Nev.) health care reform bill as a backroom deal that will raise insurance premiums and increase taxes on Americans, even as they complained they have yet to read the 2,074-page bill.
Senate Reform Race Begins
Nov. 18, 7:58 p.m.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) finally ended weeks of mystery about his health care reform bill on Wednesday night, setting the stage for a historic debate that could begin this week if he can get an initial OK from all 60 members of the Democratic Conference.
Byrd Celebrates Becoming Longest-Serving Member
Nov. 18, 5:34 p.m.
An ebullient Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) took to the floor Wednesday afternoon to celebrate his 20,774th day of service in Congress, the longest of any lawmaker in history.
Schumer Advocates for Many on Panel
Nov. 16, 12 a.m.
As Senate Majority Leader, Lyndon Johnson once said of the Joint Economic Committee, “It’s as useless as tits on a bull.” But as that panel’s chairman during the 110th Congress, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) seized the opportunity to elevate the traditionally low-profile post to the forefront of shaping policy. Read Full Article
Roll Call Video Channels
