Unemployment Bill Dealt Senate Defeat

After a vote in the Senate, the new unemployment extension bill came short of the 60 votes necessary to pass. In fact, only 52 Senators voted in favor of the legislation. I have included a brief article on the bill’s failure below courtesy Forbes.com.

Republicans and a dozen Democratic defectors in the Senate have dealt a defeat to President Barack Obama just days after he pressed Congress to renew pieces of last year's economic bill.

After coming out on the losing end of a 52-45 test vote, Obama's Democratic allies have been forced back to the drawing board in their efforts to extend unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless and provide $24 billion in aid to cash-strapped state governments.

Democrats seeking to reduce the measure's deficit impact are looking at rolling back last year's $25 a week increase in unemployment checks and giving doctors just a short reprieve from scheduled cuts in their Medicare payments.