The Blog

Coburn 1, Reid 0

10:10 AM, Jul 29, 2008 • By JOHN MCCORMACK
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Politico reports that yesterday Senate Republicans blocked Harry Reid's "Tomnibus"--an omnibus bill of many measures that Tom Coburn had placed a hold on:

The vote sent Reid into one of his trademark tirades on the Senate floor, as he basically accused Republicans of voting against people with strokes, people in wheelchairs and those suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease.

"You go home and explain to your folks [voters] about stroke legislation," Reid said. "You go home and tell people ... in a wheelchair you voted against moving forward on something that could get them out of their wheelchair."

"You're going to have to go home and explain to the poor, the disabled and the elderly," Reid continued.

Coburn objected not only to the spending increase these measures would incur but also Reid's attempt to "hotline" the bills--unanimously pass them without debate or amendment. Senate Republicans joined Coburn and said they would hold up all legislation until the Senate deals with rising gas prices.

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