Jobless benefits bill rebounds in Senate

[cal04]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100415/ap_on_bi_ge/us_unemployment_insurance

After weeks of partisan struggle that caused more than 400,000 people to miss unemployment checks, a bill restoring those benefits is on track to pass the Senate as early as Thursday.

The $18 billion measure would provide additional weeks of jobless benefits averaging $335 a week to people whose six months of state-paid benefits have run out. It's a temporary extension through June 2 that gives House and Senate Democrats time to iron out a measure funding the program for the long-term jobless through the end of the year.

With help from a single Republican, George Voinovich of Ohio, Democrats by a 60-40 vote beat back a challenge from Republicans seeking to force them to pay for the measure with new revenues or cuts in spending rather than adding costs to the $12.8 trillion national debt.

Several other programs have lapsed as well, which has meant that newly jobless people can't sign up for federal health insurance subsidies and prompted the government to delay Medicare payments to doctors rather than imposing a 21 percent cut. Democrats protested people living in flood plains can't sign up for flood insurance or renew their policies, which has delayed mortgage lending and home sales.

[bluestateguy]

1. Lovely.

Then we get to do all this again in a few weeks.

[Aramchek]

2. all those who were without their check for a month know who to vote for in the Fall

[Berry Cool]

3. George had nothing to lose. He's not going up for reelection.

Lucky for us, I guess. Anyway, this is a good thing.