Dems Cheer Vote, GOP Cheers Moral Victory
The House passed H.R. 1, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, on a 244-188 roll call vote. There are only 178 Republicans in the House — and one didn’t vote — meaning 11 Democrats crossed over and voted against the Democrat-written bill.
Not one Republican voted for the bill, despite President Obama’s efforts to include them in the process. Republicans offered their own stimulus bill, which they said would create twice as many jobs, though it failed on a 266-170 vote shortly before the Democrats’ bill passed.
“This bill we’re about to vote on is not good enough,” Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) said hours before the vote. “If this were a bipartisan effort, we could’ve had a better outcome.”
At a Democratic press conference earlier in the afternoon, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) defended the bill against Republican criticism. “The opposition to this bill can speak out against this recovery plan all they want,” Hoyer said. “But their policies have not worked. And Americans voted for change. They voted for a new direction. That’s what we’re going to get. “
Republicans let out a moral-victory cheer as voting ended, while Democrats cheered their actual victory as Speaker Nancy Pelosi gaveled the vote to a close.
The Democrats who voted against the bill include: Allen Boyd (Fla.), Bobby Bright (Ala.), Jim Cooper (Tenn.), Brad Ellsworth (Ind.), Parker Griffith (Ala.), Paul Kanjorski (Pa.), Frank Kratovil (Md.), Walt Minnick (Idaho), Collin Peterson (Minn.), Heath Shuler (N.C.), Gene Taylor (Miss.).
realclearpolitics.com
