Republicans Block Debate On Iraq? UPDATE: Why Did Reid Vote No?
...but it isn’t at all accurate. From the article:
WASHINGTON (AP) - Republicans blocked a full-fledged Senate debate over Iraq on Monday, but Democrats vowed to find a way to force President Bush to change course in a war that has claimed the lives of more than 3,000 U.S. troops. . . .
The vote was 49-47, or 11 short of the 60 needed to go ahead with debate, and left the fate of the measure uncertain.
Sixty votes in the Senate doesn’t continue debate. Sixty votes in the Senate invokes cloture, which ends debate. And that’s exactly what was being voted on today.
The Democrats were trying to rush this Iraq resolution through the Senate with little debate. The Republicans stopped it. They didn’t “block debate,” they blocked it from getting passed with little debate.
Either this AP reporter, David Espo, is woefully naive as to how the Senate works or else he’s actively spinning this story for the Dems.
Update: This is weird. Why did Reid vote with the Republicans on the resolution? If he’d voted Dem the tally would have been 48 - 48.
Anyone got an explanation?
