Where The Rubber Meets The Road (5/1/08)

As reported in last Sunday's Philadelphia Inquirer, here is how Philadelphia-area members of Congress were recorded on major roll-call votes last week.

(Not much to say this week - our people were basically on their best behavior, except for one U.S. House rep, as always.)

House

Medicaid funds dispute. The House passed, 349-62, a bill (HR 5613) placing a hold until April 2009 on new administration rules that would cut the federal share of Medicaid by $13 billion over five years and leave it up to the states to replace the funds or cut health services to the poor. In part, the new rules concern hospital and nursing-home services, graduate medical education, the placing of retarded children in family settings, and transportation for disabled children. President Bush has threatened to veto this bill.

A yes vote was to block the Medicaid cuts.

Voting yes: Robert A. Brady (D., Pa.), Michael N. Castle (R., Del.), Charles W. Dent (R., Pa.), Chaka Fattah (D., Pa.), Jim Gerlach (R., Pa.), Tim Holden (D., Pa.), Frank A. LoBiondo (R., N.J.), Patrick Murphy (D., Pa.), H. James Saxton (R., N.J.), Allyson Y. Schwartz (D., Pa.), Joe Sestak (D., Pa.) and Christopher H. Smith (R., N.J.).

Voting no: Joseph R. Pitts (R., Pa.).

Not voting: Robert E. Andrews (D., N.J.).

This week’s obligatory stupid “No” vote from Pancake Joe (and to help Bruce Slater, click here).

Coast Guard budget. Voting 395-7, the House approved an $8.4 billion fiscal 2008 budget (HR 2830) for the Coast Guard that funds the agency's traditional marine-safety mission along with post-9/11 national-security duties.
A yes vote was to pass the bill.

Voting yes: Brady, Castle, Dent, Fattah, Gerlach, Holden, LoBiondo, Murphy, Pitts, Saxton, Schwartz, Sestak, Smith.

Not voting: Andrews.

Senate

Payday equality. Voting 56-42, the Senate failed to get 60 votes needed to advance a bill (HR 2831) making it easier for plaintiffs to file lawsuits alleging pay bias based on gender, race or disability. The vote affirmed a 2007 Supreme Court ruling, in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., that the 1964 Civil Rights Act requires such suits be filed within 180 days of the first act of discrimination even if the employee was unaware of the infraction.

A yes vote was to advance the bill.

Voting yes: Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D., Del.), Thomas Carper (D., Del.), Bob Casey (D., Pa.), Frank Lautenberg (D., N.J.), Robert Menendez (D., N.J.), and Arlen Specter (R., Pa.).

Kudos to all of our people for doing the right thing, though the failure of this bill to pass is an utter disgrace (noted here).

Veterans' benefits. Senators voted, 96-1, to authorize $1 billion through fiscal 2012 to expand veterans' benefits such as disability compensation, pensions, burial payments, life insurance and job training. In part, the bill (S 1315) would increase burial allowances from $300 to $1,200 for veterans who are without next of kin and from $2,000 to $4,100 for survivors of veterans who die of a service-connected ailment.

A yes vote was to send the bill to conference with the House.

Voting yes: Biden, Carper, Casey, Lautenberg, Menendez and Specter.

This week, the House took up bills that would outlaw discrimination based on genetic testing and set regulations to protect workers from dust explosions and fires. The Senate debated the Federal Aviation Administration budget.