Schumer Called Sinema ‘Extremely Helpful’ Before Vote to Thwart Tuberville’s Pentagon Abortion Protest

Senator Chuck Schumer

Senator Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) received high praise from Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) prior to the successful vote of a bill she championed that is aimed at thwarting the effort of Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL). Tuberville is stalling promotions of high ranking military officials until the Pentagon ends its new policy of funding abortion travel for its employees.

Sinema successfully passed legislation last week that will allow the U.S. Senate to vote to confirm the promotions of more than 300 high ranking military officials at once, which she said is necessary because the Senate would otherwise struggle to handle the volume once Tuberville’s protest ends or is bypassed.

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Senate Republicans Filibuster Government Funding Bill Over Debt Ceiling Provision With Three Days Until Shutdown

Senate Republicans Monday filibustered Democrats’ bill to fund the government and suspend the debt ceiling, days before a potential federal shutdown and possible debt default.

Republicans vowed for weeks to oppose a debt ceiling increase and urged Democrats to put the provision in their filibuster-proof $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill. But Democrats have thus far refused to do so, and with their bill’s failure Monday, Congress now has just three days to pass a new funding bill to avoid a government shutdown set to begin Friday at midnight.

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Pelosi Floats Passing Infrastructure and Budget Simultaneously as Moderates and Progressives Feud

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday floated the idea of passing the bipartisan infrastructure bill and Democrats’ $3.5 trillion budget simultaneously in an attempt to balance moderates and progressives’ mutually exclusive demands.

Pelosi asked the House Rules Committee to look into the possibility after nine centrist Democrats vowed to block the budget if it came up for consideration before the infrastructure bill passed.

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Eleven Senate Democrats Vote Against COVID Tests for Illegal Immigrants at the Southern Border

Eleven Senate Democrats on Thursday voted against a modest and commonsense amendment to the Senate Budget Resolution that requires illegal migrants apprehended on the southern border to be tested for COVID-19 before they are transported into the country.

The amendment, introduced by Senator Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), a physician, establishes “a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to protecting migrants and local communities against COVID-19.”  Under the provision, migrants will be quarantined and not transported from the border until they tested negative.

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