The Senate voted Tuesday evening to table an amendment offered by Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., to insert the Stupak language in the Senate bill. The motion to table the amendment, which effectively kills it, carried by a vote of 54 to 45.
Seven Democrats voted against tabling the amendment: Nelson, Sens. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., Bob Casey, D-Pa., Ted Kaufman, D-Del., Mark Pryor, D-Ark., Kent Conrad, D-N.D., and Byron Dorgan, D-N.D. The only surprising vote on that list is Kaufman, who was appointed to replace Vice President Joe Biden.
Maine’s Republican Senators, Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe , voted with most Democrats in favor of the motion to table.
TPM reports that Nelson sounded distinctly conciliatory following the vote, and did not threaten to filibuster the underlying bill.
Matthew Spieler
Matthew Spieler is a former policy analyst for Congressional Quarterly, where he covered health care, education, labor, and veterans’ affairs. A graduate of The George Washington University, he has also worked as a reporter for CQ covering ...
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abortion, Bart Stupak, ben nelson, health care reform, ted kaufman
