Just saw Senate voting on Motion to Advance on CSpan, Durbin a no, but next two brought vote to 60. Not sure how many are Dems, vote is continuing.
Damn.
How does this continue to happen, and what are the consequences?
Alan Grayson's email today on why:
Dear [divineorder]:
A week ago last Tuesday, the Senate voted against taking up the "Fast Track" trade giveaway bill. Hooray! Every Republican expressed support, but every Democrat except Sen. Carper (D-DE) voted against it.
But just two days later, 13 Democrats switched sides. They were against it, before they were for it.
What happened during those forty-eight hours? Well, an awful lot of corporate lobbyists billed an awful lot of hours. But the official explanation was that Mitch McConnell had agreed to a separate vote on a currency manipulation bill. Which may never pass the Senate. And may never come to a vote in the House. And may never pass the House. And may never be signed by the President. And if all those things somehow do come to pass, it can join the utterly ineffective existing laws against currency manipulation.
But that was the cover story for those 13 switched votes.
And yesterday, on another Senate vote, 13 Democrats wandered off the reservation. As a public service, I am providing their phone numbers, e-mail addresses and office addresses below.
Q. If we don't stick together, then how can we possibly win?
A. We can't.
There's one last Senate vote today. Tell them "NO" on Fast Track! Call or e-mail - right now. Below is a list of every Senate Democrat who voted to let Fast Track steamroll over us. Pick one, pick them all, and MAKE THEM LISTEN.
Courage,
Rep. Alan Grayson
Bennet, Michael F. - (D - CO)
Class III
261 Russell Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-5852
Contact: www.bennet.senate.gov/contact/
Cantwell, Maria - (D - WA)
Class I
511 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-3441
Contact: www.cantwell.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/email-maria
Carper, Thomas R. - (D - DE)
Class I
513 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-2441
Contact: carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/email-senator-carper
Coons, Christopher A. - (D - DE)
Class II
127A Russell Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-5042
Contact: www.coons.senate.gov/contact/
Feinstein, Dianne - (D - CA)
Class I
331 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-3841
Contact: www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-mail-me
Heitkamp, Heidi - (D - ND)
Class I
110 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-2043
Contact: www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contact
Kaine, Tim - (D - VA)
Class I
388 Russell Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-4024
Contact: www.kaine.senate.gov/contact
McCaskill, Claire - (D - MO)
Class I
730 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-6154
Contact: www.mccaskill.senate.gov/contact
Murray, Patty - (D - WA)
Class III
154 Russell Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-2621
Contact: www.murray.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contactme
Nelson, Bill - (D - FL)
Class I
716 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-5274
Contact: www.billnelson.senate.gov/contact-bill
Shaheen, Jeanne - (D - NH)
Class II
506 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-2841
Contact: www.shaheen.senate.gov/contact/
Warner, Mark R. - (D - VA)
Class II
475 Russell Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-2023
Contact: www.warner.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=Contact
Wyden, Ron - (D - OR)
Class III
221 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-5244
Contact: www.wyden.senate.gov/contact/
Not to late for action says anneli in the comments, and I agree with all Grayson wrote. You?
5:11 PM PT: Do we want to live in America when the middle class will be wiped out.... Dem Senator Merkley http://www.c-span.org/...
6:02 PM PT: Final vote on Fast Track now ongoing, only simple majority needed. Not looking good for working class families... Up to the House to stop Fast Track.
6:33 PM PT: NYTimes
The legislation still faces a difficult path in the House, where almost every Democrat is dug in against Mr. Obama’s top legislative priority, and where a rebellion may be brewing among the most conservative Republicans. Opponents say the measure will only hasten the exodus of manufacturing jobs to low-wage countries like Vietnam, depressing wages for the working class as it buoys the fortunes of the affluent.
“Do we want to live in an America where the middle class is wiped out?” asked Senator Jeff Merkley, Democrat of Oregon, presaging the criticism still to come.
But Mr. Obama’s Senate victory was significant and convincing. It brought the president one step closer to securing the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a legacy-defining trade accord linking countries from Canada to Chile and Australia to Japan, cementing at least the economic part of Mr. Obama’s so-called pivot to Asia. Trading partners have said they cannot complete negotiations without trade promotion authority because they cannot make their own politically difficult concessions, knowing Congress could tamper with them. http://www.nytimes.com/...
6:36 PM PT: Wyden giving praise to Ryan in the House. WTF? He has truly lost it.
6:41 PM PT: CSpan running earlier floor speech from Senator Sanders foreshadowing the vote, and outlining why it is wrong, and encouraging the House to stop it.