Doomsday101
02-05-2009, 04:44 PM
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A bipartisan group of senators sounded less optimistic after ending a second meeting on the economic stimulus bill Thursday than they had at the end of the first.
Sens. Ben Nelson, a Democrat, and Republican Susan Collins said they are having a difficult time finding the right balance of cutting some Democrat-backed programs while adding spending on infrastructure, which Republicans want.
Two Democratic senators said the bipartisan group has found general agreement to cut about $100 billion from the nearly $900 billion plan. Collins had said earlier Thursday that President Obama had convinced her of the need for a plan that would cost about $800 billion.
As the group went into the earlier meeting, they said they were going "line by line" through the bill.
Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Indiana, said there is a "backbone" to a deal, but the details were being worked out between the 12 Democrats and five Republicans in the first meeting.
"It's been a painstaking, very thorough, very comprehensive process," Collins said.
Republicans have objected to some provisions in the bill that they say have nothing to do with stimulating the economy.
Collins said she was originally in favor of a bill that would have cost about $650 billion, but after meeting with President Obama, she was convinced of the need for a proposal that would be in the neighborhood of $800 billion.
Obama held a series of one-on-one meetings in the Oval Office on Wednesday with key senators who are still on the fence.
Collins, of Maine, said she went through some specific programs with the president to see which ones he would be willing to cut.
"But I will tell you, particularly on my side of the aisle, there is a vigorous debate over what the size of the package should be," she said Thursday.
"We don't want a package that is too small, because that will end up just wasting money. On the other hand, we're very leery of having an enormous package that would not be necessary and would just boost the federal deficit," Collins said as Nelson, of Nebraska, nodded in agreement.
The senators' aides were asked to leave the first meeting while the lawmakers worked, and they wound up standing in the hallway.
"We felt that staff could be helpful but, in this situation, that we needed to work with one another to put together something that we as members really can feel comfortable with and use staff as a resource rather than the traditional way," Nelson said.
On Thursday, Obama ratcheted up the pressure on Congress to pass his stimulus plan, arguing that a failure to act quickly would make a bad situation worse.
"This is not some abstract debate," he said during an address to employees at the Energy Department. "The time for talk is over. The time for action is now." Watch Obama call for action »
Although Obama said he welcomes congressional debate over the proposed stimulus, he maintained that "the scale and the scope of this plan is the right one."
The House passed an $819 billion version of the stimulus plan last week, but no Republican voted in favor of it. The president has been trying to gain Republican support before the Senate votes on its version of the bill. See what's in the House bill »
The president will need at least some Republican support in order to get the 60 votes needed to bring the bill before the full Senate.
The Senate has 56 Democrats and two independents who usually vote with them. There are 41 Republicans.
On Wednesday, the Senate approved an amendment to offer a $15,000 tax credit to people who purchase a home in the next year.
The housing amendment -- introduced by Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Georgia -- was seen by some as a move to sweeten the deal for Republicans.
Lawmakers continued debate on the bill on the Senate floor Thursday. Some Republicans seemed far from ready to back it.
"I am here today to point out the fact that this is not bipartisanship. This process that we are engaging in is not smart, we are not working together, we're about to spend $800 or $900 billion, and nobody's got a clue where we're going to land, but we've got to do it by tonight," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina.
"If this is the solution to George Bush's problems, the country is going to get worse. ... If this is the change we all can believe in, America's best days are behind her," he said.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid issued a warning to the senators working on the compromise not overreach.
"They cannot hold the president of the United States hostage," Reid said. "If they want to work constructively, we will work with them. The president has instructed me to work with them if it's going to help the legislation.
"But if they think they are going to rewrite this bill and Barack Obama's going to walk away from what he has been trying to do for the American people, they've got another thought coming," he said.
When asked for her reaction to Reid's comments, Collins was visibly annoyed.
"I would say to the majority leader, his success depends upon the success of this group," she said.
The fate of the package has been in some doubt as the president ran into opposition from moderate Democrats and Republicans in the Senate who are concerned about some of the spending projects in the package.
In the House, the leaders of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of conservative Democrats, sent a letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi asking that some of the provisions Republicans have objected to be removed from the House bill and be taken up later outside the stimulus debate.
President Obama is privately telling senators in both parties that he is confident his economic recovery plan will pass in the Senate by the end of the week, according to two senior administration officials and two Congressional officials.
"We will have the votes," said a senior administration official.
Getting the bill through the Senate by the end of the week would keep the legislation on track to be signed into law by Presidents Day, February 16, which has been Obama's target.
Sens. Ben Nelson, a Democrat, and Republican Susan Collins said they are having a difficult time finding the right balance of cutting some Democrat-backed programs while adding spending on infrastructure, which Republicans want.
Two Democratic senators said the bipartisan group has found general agreement to cut about $100 billion from the nearly $900 billion plan. Collins had said earlier Thursday that President Obama had convinced her of the need for a plan that would cost about $800 billion.
As the group went into the earlier meeting, they said they were going "line by line" through the bill.
Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Indiana, said there is a "backbone" to a deal, but the details were being worked out between the 12 Democrats and five Republicans in the first meeting.
"It's been a painstaking, very thorough, very comprehensive process," Collins said.
Republicans have objected to some provisions in the bill that they say have nothing to do with stimulating the economy.
Collins said she was originally in favor of a bill that would have cost about $650 billion, but after meeting with President Obama, she was convinced of the need for a proposal that would be in the neighborhood of $800 billion.
Obama held a series of one-on-one meetings in the Oval Office on Wednesday with key senators who are still on the fence.
Collins, of Maine, said she went through some specific programs with the president to see which ones he would be willing to cut.
"But I will tell you, particularly on my side of the aisle, there is a vigorous debate over what the size of the package should be," she said Thursday.
"We don't want a package that is too small, because that will end up just wasting money. On the other hand, we're very leery of having an enormous package that would not be necessary and would just boost the federal deficit," Collins said as Nelson, of Nebraska, nodded in agreement.
The senators' aides were asked to leave the first meeting while the lawmakers worked, and they wound up standing in the hallway.
"We felt that staff could be helpful but, in this situation, that we needed to work with one another to put together something that we as members really can feel comfortable with and use staff as a resource rather than the traditional way," Nelson said.
On Thursday, Obama ratcheted up the pressure on Congress to pass his stimulus plan, arguing that a failure to act quickly would make a bad situation worse.
"This is not some abstract debate," he said during an address to employees at the Energy Department. "The time for talk is over. The time for action is now." Watch Obama call for action »
Although Obama said he welcomes congressional debate over the proposed stimulus, he maintained that "the scale and the scope of this plan is the right one."
The House passed an $819 billion version of the stimulus plan last week, but no Republican voted in favor of it. The president has been trying to gain Republican support before the Senate votes on its version of the bill. See what's in the House bill »
The president will need at least some Republican support in order to get the 60 votes needed to bring the bill before the full Senate.
The Senate has 56 Democrats and two independents who usually vote with them. There are 41 Republicans.
On Wednesday, the Senate approved an amendment to offer a $15,000 tax credit to people who purchase a home in the next year.
The housing amendment -- introduced by Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Georgia -- was seen by some as a move to sweeten the deal for Republicans.
Lawmakers continued debate on the bill on the Senate floor Thursday. Some Republicans seemed far from ready to back it.
"I am here today to point out the fact that this is not bipartisanship. This process that we are engaging in is not smart, we are not working together, we're about to spend $800 or $900 billion, and nobody's got a clue where we're going to land, but we've got to do it by tonight," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina.
"If this is the solution to George Bush's problems, the country is going to get worse. ... If this is the change we all can believe in, America's best days are behind her," he said.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid issued a warning to the senators working on the compromise not overreach.
"They cannot hold the president of the United States hostage," Reid said. "If they want to work constructively, we will work with them. The president has instructed me to work with them if it's going to help the legislation.
"But if they think they are going to rewrite this bill and Barack Obama's going to walk away from what he has been trying to do for the American people, they've got another thought coming," he said.
When asked for her reaction to Reid's comments, Collins was visibly annoyed.
"I would say to the majority leader, his success depends upon the success of this group," she said.
The fate of the package has been in some doubt as the president ran into opposition from moderate Democrats and Republicans in the Senate who are concerned about some of the spending projects in the package.
In the House, the leaders of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of conservative Democrats, sent a letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi asking that some of the provisions Republicans have objected to be removed from the House bill and be taken up later outside the stimulus debate.
President Obama is privately telling senators in both parties that he is confident his economic recovery plan will pass in the Senate by the end of the week, according to two senior administration officials and two Congressional officials.
"We will have the votes," said a senior administration official.
Getting the bill through the Senate by the end of the week would keep the legislation on track to be signed into law by Presidents Day, February 16, which has been Obama's target.