In a statement on the Senate floor this morning, Republican leader Mitch McConnell signaled he'd vote for cloture for the immigration bill. But he also suggested the bill needs to be amended.
"The Gang of Eight has done its work. Now it’s time for the Gang of 100 to do its work — for the entire Senate to have its say on this issue, and see if we can do something to improve the status quo. At the risk of stating the obvious, this bill has serious flaws," McConnell said, then suggesting he'd vote for cloture, the motion to proceed.
“I’ll vote to debate it and for the opportunity to amend it, but in the days ahead there will need to be major changes to this bill if it’s going to become law. These include, but are not limited to, the areas of border security, government benefits, and taxes."
McConnell then says he'll look to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano for more than an "assurance":
“I’m going to need more than an assurance from Secretary Napolitano, for instance, that the border is secure to feel comfortable about the situation on the border. Too often recently, we have been reminded that as government grows it becomes less responsible to the American people, and fails to perform basic functions either through incompetence or willful disregard of the wishes of Congress. Our continued failure to secure major portions of the border not only makes true immigration reform far more difficult; it presents an urgent threat to national security.
“Some have also criticized this bill for its cost to taxpayers. It’s a fair critique. Those who were here illegally shouldn’t have their unlawful status rewarded with benefits and tax credits. So this bill has some serious flaws. And we need to be serious about fixing them. The goal here should be to make the status quo better, not worse. And that’s what the next few weeks are about: they’re about giving the entire Senate, and indeed, the entire country, an opportunity to weigh in on this debate, to make their voices heard, and try to improve our immigration policy. And that means an open amendment process.
“But let me be clear: doing nothing about a problem we all acknowledge isn’t a solution. It’s an avoidance strategy. And the longer we wait to have this debate, as difficult as it is, the harder it’ll be to solve the problem.
“We tried to do something six years ago, and didn’t succeed. We may not succeed this time either. But attempting to solve tough problems in a serious and deliberate manner is precisely what the Senate, at its best, should do. And it’s what we’re going to try to do in this debate.”
Writing for Salon, Curtis Morrison, a self-titled "liberal activist," admits to bugging Mitch McConnell's office. He claims to have been inspired by Julian Assange and claims, "If given another chance to record him, I’d do it again."
In a couple minutes, the top Republican in the Senate will say that "we’ve only started to scratch the surface of this scandal." Mitch McConnell will say those words in reference to the IRS-targeting-conservatives scandal, and will make those remarks on the Senate floor.
David Corn, the Mother Jones writer who released the "secret tape" of a Mitch McConnell campaign meeting, might have broken the law by publishing information that appears to have been obtained illegally, according to sources.
A Louisville-area Democrat says two employees of Kentucky Progress, a left-wing activist group, are responsible for secretly recording a strategy session between Republican senator Mitch McConnell and his campaign staff. WFPL, the Louisville National Public Radio affiliate, has the scoop:
Mother Jones, the liberal magazine that somehow obtained audio of a private Mitch McConnell campaign meeting, now wonders whether the top Republican in the Senate is breaking the law. The direct accusation is that Senate staffers did work to help McConnell's reelection, which if done on official time, could be a violation of the law.
The top Republican in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, is asking the feds to investigate whether a closed campaign meeting was illegally wiretapped by his political opponents. The issue arises after the liberal outlet Mother Jones published "A recording of a private meeting between the Senate GOP leader and campaign aides."
Despite Hollywood actress Ashley Judd’s high-profile political rollout, national Democrats appear to be looking for an alternative Senate candidate in Kentucky to challenge Republican minority leader Mitch McConnell next year. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, for instance, has remained cool to a Judd candidacy.
Mitch McConnell, the leader of the GOP minority in the Senate, struck an upbeat tone in his Friday morning address to the conservative activists gathered at CPAC. “Friends, this is a moment of renewal. I truly believe it,” he said. In this era of new beginning, McConnell is seeking his sixth Senate term next year, and the 71-year-old conservative Republican is embracing his much younger Kentuckian, Rand Paul.
The top Republican in the Senate, Mitch McConnell released a statement this morning saying that "there will be no last-minute, back-room deal and absolutely no agreement to increase taxes." McConnell's statement came out before he, along with other congressional leaders, is scheduled to meet with President Obama at the White House.
The top Republican in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, said over the weekend that opposition to the nomination of Chuck Hagel as secretary of defense is "intensifying." The second highest ranking Republican in the Senate, John Cornyn of Texas, has been leading the charge against Hagel.
Is Mitch McConnell already losing his reelection campaign? That's what a new poll from the Louisville Courier-Journal released Tuesday suggests. According to the survey of 609 registered voters in Kentucky, just 17 percent say they would vote to reelect the Republican and Senate minority leader, with 34 percent saying they will vote against him. Forty-four percent, meanwhile, say they will "wait and see" who will challenge McConnell in 2014 before making a decision. The firm Survey USA conducted the poll for the newspaper.
Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, the top Republican in the Senate, blasted President Barack Obama for not leaving anything on the "fiscal cliff" negotiating table this morning in remarks on the Senate floor.
Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell blasted President Barack Obama from the Senate floor this morning for not offering any specifics on spending cuts.
"With the Fiscal Cliff fast-approaching, I feel the need to point out something this morning that’s perfectly obvious to most Americans, but which Democrats in Washington still don’t seem to grasp. I’m referring to the fact that any solution to our spending and debt problem has to involve cuts to out-of-control Washington spending," said McConnell.
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