Grassroots Lobbying "Reform" Bill Fails in Senate

Senate/C-SPAN 2 | 1/18/07

[conservative in nyc]

The Senate just voted for the Bennett Amendment to strip the ill-conceived Grassroots Lobbying "Reform" provision of the Ethics Reform Bill, 55-43. The vote was pretty much party-line, with some exceptions (Landreiu, Dorgan and Bayh voted for the amendment, for example).

This provision could have had far-reaching implications by potentially forcing grassroots organizations who asked members of the public to call their Congressmen to register as lobbyists. Some articles said it could even have applied to Internet bloggers.

Unless this ill-conceived provision gets put back in by the Conference Committee, it's dead for now.

[conservative in nyc]

More to follow when the media catches up.

[conservative in nyc]

For background, see, for example:
McCain does about-face on grassroots reform bill
Political Bloggers Could Be Required To Register Or Face Jail Time

[American_Centurion]

Divided by party lines eh? Well if that isn't enough proof for any non-comatose American to realize that Dems are commies and enemies of freedom, nothing will.

[silentreignofheroes]

Just testing the waters,,,we'll be back..

[Robert A Cook PE]

A bit weird write up, but it looks like the democrats listed who voted "against the party" voted for the repubbies.

Again, notice the bias = NO mention of the DEMOCRATS who were pushing FOR restriction of free speech!

NOR any mention that the REPUBLICANS were voting to RETAIN free speech!

[conservative in nyc]

Simple math tells us there had to be at least 6 Democrats who have half a brain. Dingy Harry, Hillary!, Schumer, Kerry, Sheets Byrd, "you don't have children - so you can't possibly run a war!" Boxer, and the dumbest man in the Senate (Biden), among others, voted no.

[neverdem]

Thanks for the info!

[conservative in nyc]

The write-up is mine. Trust me, there's no liberal bias on my part. The Democrats were voting for restrictions on free speech. I'm just shocked that McCain didn't go along, as usual. As I said on another thread, both of my Senators voted to stop campaigns that would cause them the inconvenience of actually listening to their pesky constituents.

Yes, there were at least 6 Democrats who voted with the Republicans. Mo1 and I caught the name of three while they were reading the role call.

[DrGunsforHands]

They make it sound like Republicans voted for the amendment, as they said it was mostly along party lines, as there are more democrats than Republicans.

[conservative in nyc]

They is ME - and I certainly didn't intend that.

[Salvation]

Reid is so saddened.

[Quix]

THIS WILL BEAR, REQUIRE

ETERNAL VIGILENCE.

The traitorous, treasonous globalists will try every trick in the book to get this on the books one way or another as soon as they can catch enough patriots napping.

[sgtbono2002]

Its a sad world when only 6 Democrats could see the danger in this manure ridden bill.

I applaud them and condemn the rest.

[conservative in nyc]

Well, we don't know for sure it was only 6 Democrats. One Senator is missing. And a Repuiblican or two MIGHT have voted against it.

Unlike in the House, C-SPAN doesn't list a party breakdown on the screen when Senators vote. Someone reads the roll, and I'm not quick enough to remember all of the names. We have to see the roll, which should be posted on the Senate website, soon.

[conservative in nyc]

7 Democrats voted Aye. Brownback missed the vote. From the Senate website:
Grouped By Vote Position

YEAs ---55
Alexander (R-TN) Allard (R-CO) Baucus (D-MT) Bayh (D-IN) Bennett (R-UT) Bond (R-MO) Bunning (R-KY) Burr (R-NC) Chambliss (R-GA) Coburn (R-OK) Cochran (R-MS) Coleman (R-MN) Collins (R-ME) Conrad (D-ND) Corker (R-TN) Cornyn (R-TX) Craig (R-ID) Crapo (R-ID) DeMint (R-SC)	Dole (R-NC) Domenici (R-NM) Dorgan (D-ND) Ensign (R-NV) Enzi (R-WY) Graham (R-SC) Grassley (R-IA) Gregg (R-NH) Hagel (R-NE) Hatch (R-UT) Hutchison (R-TX) Inhofe (R-OK) Isakson (R-GA) Kyl (R-AZ) Landrieu (D-LA) Lott (R-MS) Lugar (R-IN) Martinez (R-FL) McCain (R-AZ)	McConnell (R-KY) Murkowski (R-AK) Nelson (D-NE) Roberts (R-KS) Salazar (D-CO) Sessions (R-AL) Shelby (R-AL) Smith (R-OR) Snowe (R-ME) Specter (R-PA) Stevens (R-AK) Sununu (R-NH) Thomas (R-WY) Thune (R-SD) Vitter (R-LA) Voinovich (R-OH) Warner (R-VA)

NAYs ---43
Akaka (D-HI) Biden (D-DE) Bingaman (D-NM) Boxer (D-CA) Brown (D-OH) Byrd (D-WV) Cantwell (D-WA) Cardin (D-MD) Carper (D-DE) Casey (D-PA) Clinton (D-NY) Dodd (D-CT) Durbin (D-IL) Feingold (D-WI) Feinstein (D-CA)	Harkin (D-IA) Inouye (D-HI) Kennedy (D-MA) Kerry (D-MA) Klobuchar (D-MN) Kohl (D-WI) Lautenberg (D-NJ) Leahy (D-VT) Levin (D-MI) Lieberman (ID-CT) Lincoln (D-AR) McCaskill (D-MO) Menendez (D-NJ) Mikulski (D-MD) Murray (D-WA)	Nelson (D-FL) Obama (D-IL) Pryor (D-AR) Reed (D-RI) Reid (D-NV) Rockefeller (D-WV) Sanders (I-VT) Schumer (D-NY) Stabenow (D-MI) Tester (D-MT) Webb (D-VA) Whitehouse (D-RI) Wyden (D-OR)

Not Voting - 2
Brownback (R-KS)	Johnson (D-SD)

[Robert A Cook PE]

Thanks for the summary - I (mis) understood to anticipating the MSM bias.

Now, wait until tomorrow - then you'll see the same thing.

[conservative in nyc]

I'm willing to bet that no one in the MSM will call the original grassroots lobbying provision "ill-conceived". Twice.

[Teflonic]

This is good news, without conservative talk we likely would never have heard about this to begin with and would have passed.

[Freedom'sWorthIt]

This is good news! But, we need explanations for the Dems who voted the "right" way. I saw that the ACLU actually agreed with Dr. Dobson in opposing this attempted unconstitutional and dastardly squelching of grassroots (us) "lobbying". Is that why the "right" votes from some Dems?

[conservative in nyc]

All the Democrat Senators who voted for the amendment are from red states. That pretty much explains it to me.