Senators Reach Accord on Stimulus Plan as Jobs Vanish (Collins, Snowe, Specter)

New York Times ^ | February 8, 2009 | Carl Hulse and David M. Herszenhorn

[reaganaut1]

WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats reached an agreement with Republican moderates on Friday to pare a huge economic recovery measure, clearing the way for approval of [the package].

...

The fine print was not immediately available, and the numbers were shifting. But in essence, the Democratic leadership and two centrist Republicans announced they had struck a deal on about $110 billion in cuts to the roughly $900 billion legislation — a deal expected to provide at least the 60 votes needed to send the bill out of the Senate and into negotiations with the House, which has passed its own version.

...

The details were negotiated at an afternoon meeting in the office of the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada, involving Mr. Reid, other top Democrats and two Republicans, Susan Collins of Maine and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania. After they came to terms, the senators brought in the White House chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, for assurance that the deal was acceptable to the administration. Mr. Emanuel signaled it was.

[SuziQ]

Time that the citizens started voting for their Country and not for Political Party’s. Voting for Parties is what has gotten us into the position we are in.

Oh, really, and which party, pray tell, is the one that's standing firm AGAINST this pork fest? Hint, it AIN'T the Democrat Party. Just because we had three Senators, who we assumed couldn't be counted on anyway, who defected to the Democrats, it doesn't behoove us to toss the rest of the Republicans in the Senate to the wolves.

We should be praising ALL the Republicans in the House AND the Senate for doing the right thing. If we still b*tch and moan, even when they do something we think is right, it's no wonder they start discounting anything conservatives support. Give credit where credit is due, and encourage them to continue doing what's best for this nation.