hurricanemaxi
Joined: 08 Sep 2011
Posts: 66
|
 Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2011 4:10 am Post subject: GOP Defections Raise Specter of Gov’t Shutdown |
 |
|
The U.S. House rejected a bill that includes $3.65 billion in aid to victims of Hurricane Irene and other natural disasters, a setback for Republican leaders controlling the chamber.
Some Republican lawmakers objected to the overall cost of the measure offered by their leaders. House Democrats opposed a spending cut in it. The vote against the bill was 230-195.
The dispute raises the specter of a government shutdown because the disaster assistance is attached to a measure needed to fund the government until Nov. 18. The current fiscal year ends Sept. 30, and Congress is in recess next week.
Republican opponents objected that the measure would cap discretionary spending for the 2012 fiscal year at $1.043 trillion, a compromise figure lawmakers agreed to last month as part of a deal to raise the debt ceiling.
Representative Jeff Flake, an Arizona Republican who opposed the measure, complained the figure was $24 billion more than the party agreed to spend when it passed House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s 2012 spending plan in April.
“Why in the world would we add $24 billion?” Flake said. “It’s a disaster.”
The legislation would provide $3.4 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency along with $226 million for the Army Corps of Engineers to help victims of Irene, the Aug. 23 earthquake centered in Virginia as well as tornadoes and wildfires that have struck the nation’s midsection.
House Republican leaders, to help offset those costs, proposed reducing by $1.5 billion a program subsidizing the development of more fuel-efficient cars. Democrats balked at that, saying it will hurt the auto industry.
__________
prices of gold
Top Franchises |
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
