It's Tuesday, September 27, and Day 226 since Justice Antonin Scalia died and Mitch McConnell decided no nominee would get any Senate attention: No meetings, no hearings, no votes. It's also Day 195 since Merrick Garland was nominated by President Obama to fill that vacancy. Days until the government runs out of funding: 3.5.
So what's the Senate doing today? Still not funding government, because Republicans continue to refuse to help the people of Flint, Michigan, with clean drinking water.
The Senate failed to approve a procedural vote, 45-55, for the continuing resolution.
Several Republicans also objected to the bill that would fund the government only until Dec. 9. The largest sticking point, however, appeared to be Republicans’ failure to deal with Flint’s lead crisis, even as they rushed to help flood victims in other states, especially Louisiana.
"Would it be asking too much for the speaker of the House, the leader of the Senate, the Republican leader of the Senate, to stand and say, 'We're going to get that thing done, we're going to pass it, we're going to make sure that the bill that passed overwhelmingly in the Senate is going to become law?" asked Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), referring to a separate bill, the Water Resources Development Act, that includes funding for Flint and other lead mitigation efforts. "But they ignore that. They ignore the people of Flint."
By the way, 12 Republicans also voted against moving to proceed on this bill, so McConnell's going to have a hard time blaming anything on Democrats alone. But just to prove how much of a monster he is, McConnell is now suggesting that flood-ravaged Louisiana won't get any funding either. "We keep hearing their position is 'no Flint, no floods.' Well that's certainly an option worth discussing," he told reporters.
Yep, if he can't get his way, he'll take more hostages. He's a horrible, horrible person. He's Donald Trump if Donald Trump had impulse control and political experience. This man should not be in charge of the Senate. This man should not be in charge of a convenience store.
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