Friday, September 14, 2012

Democrats Take Pains to Avoid Rand Paul's Pakistan Amendment

Senators cut a deal tonight that will allow them to take a five-day break instead of working at unusual hours through the weekend.
Under the agreement, procedural votes expected to start at 1 a.m. Friday will be put off until Wednesday, with the clock accelerated on a veterans' jobs bill that Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) was prepared to work on through the weekend to get around an objection from Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.).
The deal came after Reid made it clear that he would take any action needed to avoid a vote on a Paul amendment cutting off aid to Pakistan.
"I respect the interest of the Senator from Kentucky in relation to Pakistan, Egypt, Libya, but every now and then the Senate should be able to focus on a small good thing," Reid said, in reference to the package of veterans' jobs proposals pending before the chamber.
"I just think my friend from Kentucky maybe should have run for secretary of State rather than the Senate," Reid said Wednesday night as the standoff with Paul came to a head.
This in not the first time the Pakistan amendment has been blocked through procedural maneuvers. Paul tried to get a vote on a Pakistani aid amendment during June debate on the Senate's farm bill, but Reid rebuffed that effort as well. Paul wants to cut off aid to the country until it releases Shakil Afridi, a Pakistani doctor who provided assistance to the U.S. in the runup to the killing of Osama bin Laden.
For his part, Paul said he is willing to work with Reid to set up a short-time agreement for voting on the amendment.

Read more: http://www.rollcall.com/news/democrats_take_pains_to_avoid_rand_pauls_pakistan_amendment-217581-1.html?pos=htmbtxt

No comments: