Sen Kerry to speak on Senate floor on the Kyl Amendment today

[TayTay]

I guess sometime before 2:00pm or so. (Thursday, March 5th)

Summary of Kyl Amendment from the Thomas listing:

SA 629. Mr. KYL submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill H.R. 1105, making omnibus appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2009, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

On page 942, between lines 14 and 15, insert the following:

PROHIBITION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR RESETTLEMENT INTO UNITED STATES OF PALESTINIANS FROM GAZA

Sec. 7093. None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be made available to resettle Palestinians from Gaza into the United States.

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/D?d111:39:./temp/~bdr0m6::

Ahm, just a guess here folks, but I am thinking the Chairman votes "No" on this amendment.

[Luftmensch067]

1. Just saw this -- has he spoken yet? n/t

[ObamaKerryDem]

2. I look forward to the video! :) n/t

[beachmom]

3. Sen. Kerry has not appeared yet. Ensign is currently up

very upset about his amendment not being allowed to be offered. I am sure this is about Senate procedure stuff.

I hit record earlier, and just fast forwarded through it. So no one has missed Kerry yet.

[Luftmensch067]

4. Thanks SO much for this info!

Turning on the TV now to see if we can catch it if he does come on!

[Luftmensch067]

5. JK on NOW! n/t

[beachmom]

6. Saw it. Basically, he said that Kyl's amendment is bad for 3 reasons:

1. It may stop the whole Omnibus bill
2. It will put the funding back to the previous year so that Treasury and Counterterrorism won't get additional funding to enforce Kyl's amendment. Kind of ironic.
3. It is unilateral sanctions, and is not within a broad policy with respect to Iran. That should be thought through carefully and not just tacked onto a bill ad hoc.

Basically, Kyl's amendment blows. Anyone know if weak kneed Dems are voting for it anyway so they don't look weak on defense? I thought Kerry gave very good reasons to vote against it, but am unsure of what the votes on it would look like.

[karynnj]

8. If any are moved to do so - Kerry should be able to filibuster it

There would be some Republicans with Kerry - likely led by Lugar. They would just need 41 Senators. (From the hearings, Lugar and Kerry are pretty much in agreement)

[karynnj]

7. Here is today's page on CSPAN from which you can get video

http://www.c-spanarchives.org/congress/?q=node/77539&hors=s#

[karynnj]

9. The amendment rejected - but I don't get people like Feingold voting for it

Given the knee jerk - they are evil response, especially after the Supreme Leader's speech the other day and the reports that they may be further along to a nuclear bomb - Kerry did a great job stopping this. Remember the margin Kyl/Lieberman passed by - 76 to 22. (Even the gain of 8 Senators (one not seated yet) - can't be the full reason.)


.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 111th Congress - 1st Session

as compiled through Senate LIS by the Senate Bill Clerk under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate

Vote Summary

Question: On the Amendment (Kyl Amdt. No. 634 )
Vote Number: 85 Vote Date: March 5, 2009, 06:49 PM
Required For Majority: 1/2 Vote Result: Amendment Rejected
Amendment Number: S.Amdt. 634 to H.R. 1105 (Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009)
Statement of Purpose: To prohibit the expenditure of amounts made available under this Act in a contract with any company that has a business presence in Iran's energy sector.
Vote Counts: YEAs 41
NAYs 53
Not Voting 5

Grouped By Vote Position
YEAs ---41
Alexander (R-TN)
Barrasso (R-WY)
Bayh (D-IN)
Bennett (R-UT)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burr (R-NC)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Collins (R-ME)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Crapo (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
Ensign (R-NV)
Enzi (R-WY)
Feingold (D-WI)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hatch (R-UT)
Hutchison (R-TX)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Isakson (R-GA)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Lieberman (ID-CT)
Martinez (R-FL)
McCain (R-AZ)
McConnell (R-KY)
Nelson (D-FL)
Nelson (D-NE)
Risch (R-ID)
Roberts (R-KS)
Shelby (R-AL)
Snowe (R-ME)
Specter (R-PA)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)
Voinovich (R-OH)
Wicker (R-MS)


NAYs ---53
Akaka (D-HI)
Baucus (D-MT)
Begich (D-AK)
Bennet (D-CO)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Boxer (D-CA)
Brown (D-OH)
Burris (D-IL)
Byrd (D-WV)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Cardin (D-MD)
Carper (D-DE)
Casey (D-PA)
Corker (R-TN)
Dodd (D-CT)
Dorgan (D-ND)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Gillibrand (D-NY)
Hagan (D-NC)
Harkin (D-IA)
Inouye (D-HI)
Johnson (D-SD)
Kaufman (D-DE)
Kerry (D-MA)
Klobuchar (D-MN)
Kohl (D-WI)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lincoln (D-AR)
Lugar (R-IN)
McCaskill (D-MO)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Merkley (D-OR)
Mikulski (D-MD)
Murkowski (R-AK)
Murray (D-WA)
Pryor (D-AR)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Rockefeller (D-WV)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schumer (D-NY)
Shaheen (D-NH)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Tester (D-MT)
Udall (D-CO)
Udall (D-NM)
Warner (D-VA)
Webb (D-VA)
Whitehouse (D-RI)
Wyden (D-OR)

Not Voting - 5
Conrad (D-ND)
Johanns (R-NE)
Kennedy (D-MA)
Landrieu (D-LA)
Sessions (R-AL)

[Inuca]

10. Feingold

I don't know about this specific vote, but I checked out the roll calls from the previous couple of days, and Feingold hs voted with Rs almost (?) 100%. I guess he does not like the bill and he is at his best mavericky behavior. I did not follow the floor discussion nor read about it, so all I know is the vote pattern. OTOH I can take this from Feingold, that's how he is, very good (and very smart) on mant things, not much of a team player, and at times kind of weird. Bayh on the other hand....

[Mass]

11. I understand most of his other votes as they go with the fact that he is a fiscal conservative

and does not like at all earmarks and deficit.

This vote, however, makes little sense to me as it would block options in foreign policy. I am not surprised to see Bayh, and the two Nelson vote for this as they are hawks, but from Feingold, it is very weird. There is another amendment as well where his vote is weird. It has to do with funds for the UN.

[karynnj]

12. I agree those two are weird votes

The only thing I can think of was that he saw them as vehicles to stop the spending bill from passing because they are so bad. This strategy could cause the process to stop and for changes to be made. These amendments could then be stripped out in conference. Otherwise, I don't get it - as he would have sided with Kerry and Lugar on the Iran one.

(It is funny that there is almost no uproar on this - imagine if Kerry lost his wonderful mind and cast these two votes.)

The scary thing to me is that the UN one got 43 votes and the Iran one 41. (I do think that Kerry's excellent speech kept Kyl's from passing - especially after the news on Iran in the last couple of weeks.)

[beachmom]

13. More info on Kyl's amendments, one apparently based on an internet rumor:

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/03/is-kyls-refugees-amendment-inspired-by-an-internet-rumor.php?ref=fp4

Republicans have won votes on a dozen of their amendments thanks to their successful filibuster of the $410 billion 2009 spending bill last week -- and one-quarter of that dozen were introduced by Sen. Jon Kyl (AZ), the second-ranked GOPer in the upper chamber.

Interestingly enough, all three of Kyl's amendments deal with U.S. policy towards Palestine at a time when signs are pointing to a possible unity government by Fatah and Hamas. The most eyebrow-raising of the three, however, is a bid to prevent any government money from being used to resettle Palestinian refugees from Gaza to America.

As the Mondoweiss blog explains, an Internet rumor making the rounds on the right has accused President Obama of signing an order to resettle hundreds of thousands of Hamas sympathizers in the U.S. ... without a grain of truth to it.

[ProSense]

14. Group lauds Kerry rejects Kyl "grandstanding"

APN Applauds Senate for Rejecting Mideast-related Grandstanding

Washington, D.C – Americans for Peace Now (APN) today applauded the Senate for rejecting two irresponsible Middle East-related amendments to the FY09 Omnibus Appropriations bill (HR 1105). These amendments, introduced by Sen. John Kyl (R-AZ), gratuitously targeted humanitarian aid to Palestinians and the US-Egypt relationship. Both were rejected by a strong bipartisan vote.

In addition, APN expressed satisfaction that Senator Kyl withdrew a third amendment, seeking to make Palestinians from Gaza the only category of people in the world barred -- based on their ethnicity and place of origin -- from entry as refugees into the United States. Kyl did so after it became widely known that the amendment was based on a thoroughly debunked internet urban legend to the effect that the Obama Administration is planning to resettle large numbers of Gazans in the US.

Commenting on the votes, APN President and CEO Debra DeLee said, "Yesterday, a large number of Senators set politics aside and did the right thing with respect to the Middle East, rejecting amendments that were not only gratuitous but potentially counter-productive. These amendments were nothing more than political grandstanding at the expense of the U.S. foreign policy and national security in the region. We commend all Senators, from both parties, who rejected this political gamesmanship and spoke out or voted against these pointless initiatives. In particular, we applaud the seriousness and leadership shown by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA), Appropriations Committee Foreign Operations Subcommittee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Foreign Operations Subcommittee Ranking Member Judd Gregg (R-NH)."

The amendment targeting Palestinian aid (SA 631) was defeated by a vote of 39-56, while the amendment targeting Egypt (SA 630) was defeated by a vote of 34-61.

APN, America's leading pro-Israel pro-peace organization, has in recent days weighed in with all Senate offices in opposition to these amendments. APN's talking points opposing the amendments are copied below.

more

[beachmom]

15. Nice diary about this:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/3/12/202424/055/982/707869

[Luftmensch067]

16. That is a nice diary!

Wish it wasn't too late for me to rec it!

Isn't this the second favorable JK diary by this diarist? Do we know who he (I'm assuming because of "guy") is?

[beachmom]

17. The diarist seems very focused on Middle East peace,

and likes what he sees in Kerry. Check out his work, which is quite impressive:

http://rbguy.dailykos.com/