Jim Bunning, a Republican from Kentucky, is single-handedly blocking Senate action needed to prevent an estimated 1.2 million American workers from prematurely losing their unemployment benefits next month.
As Democratic senators asked again and again for unanimous consent for a vote on a 30-day extension Thursday night. Bunning refused to go along.
And when Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) begged him to drop his objection, Politico reports, Bunning replied: "Tough shit."
Bunning says he doesn't oppose extending benefits -- he just doesn't want the money that's required added to the deficit. He proposes paying for the 30-day extension with stimulus funds. The Senate's GOP leadership did not support him in his objections.
"I'll be here as long as you're here and as long as all those other senators are here and I'm going to object every time because you won't pay for this and you propose to never pay for it," Bunning said.
And at one point during the debate, which dragged on till nearly midnight, Bunning complained of missing a basketball game.
"I have missed the Kentucky-South Carolina game that started at 9:00," he said,
"and it's the only redeeming chance we had to beat South Carolina since they're the only team that has beat Kentucky this year.
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The unemployment rate in Kentucky is 10.7 percent.
The stakes are enormous: provisions of last year's stimulus bill that allow extra weeks of unemployment benefits and COBRA health coverage are set to expire on Feb. 28. State workforce agencies have already sent out letters informing recipients that they'll be ineligible for extra "tiers" of benefits starting next month. The National Employment Law Project estimates that 1.2 million people will prematurely lose benefits in March.
Rightardia comment: Sen. Jim Bunning has been a huge disappointment as a senator and will not run for re-election. This is what happens when a sports hero with no political skill is elected.
Apparently watching a sports game is more important to Bunning than helping needy Americans. The Democratic party should crucify Sen. Bunning for being a hard right ideologue.
Bunning is a major league conservative ass hole!
sources: Huffington Post and the Daily Beast
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1 comment:
You sound like a ditto head. In the state that I live in, the are 10 unemployed people for every job that is available. That is after a republican governor, House and Senate for the last 12 years.
BTW you don't pay for unemployment insurance, your employer does.
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