Unbelievable. Senator Colburn of Oklahoma still tries to block the 9/11 bill and provides misinformation.
From Huffington Post:
The Senate did hold a hearing, however, in June, though Coburn didn’t attend it, according to a Senate Democratic aide.
To win Republican support, Democrats have slashed $1.2 billion from the cost of the bill — by cutting out a victims compensation fund. And Democrats have backed off the attempt to close tax loopholes that benefit major corporations and instead are offering to pay for the bill, according to aides familiar with the negotiations, by setting a fee on federal government contractors with foreign countries that have not signed certain procurement agreements with the U.S and by extending a fee that already exists on certain H1B visas. The latter fee had unanimous support among Republicans and Democrats earlier this year.
Support for the measure had apparently been growing before Coburn’s announcement. New York Democratic Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, two of the bill’s sponsors, both claimed Monday that the bill finally had the votes to pass. That contention appeared to be supported by the recent comments of a some key Republicans who had encouraged a Senate détente in order to send the package through to the President.
On Tuesday, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani became the latest name on that list.
“This should not be seen as a Democratic or Republican issue. It shouldn’t even been seen as a fiscal issue. This is a matter of morality, it’s a matter of obligation,” Giuliani said on an appearance on a local Fox affiliate.
And last week, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee said that “every Republican should vote for this bill.”
Current New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, an independent, also urged the Senate to reach an agreement, saying Monday that the “time for excuses is over.”
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, one of the bill’s sponsors, tells another story:
Just what is it going to take to get these people some help?
