DC Vouchers passed: Very Close

[BrewCrew]

Sorry if a dupe. Vouchers are close to be a reality in DC. Damn. It was a close vote with a couple of good D's missing the vote? Not sure it would have made a difference, but still close. Besides this 205-203 tally, the other key vote was Eleanor Holmes Norton's Amendment that prohibited any funds from being used for a DC voucher program. It failed on a tie 203-203. Same circumstance as above.

Story: <http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/20030905/ap_on_go_co/vouchers&e=1>

Vote Tally: <http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=512&ncid=703&e=8&u=/ap/20030905/ap_on_go_co/house_rollcall_vouchers>

Vote Tally: <http://clerk.house.gov/cgi-bin/vote.exe?year=2003&rollnumber=479>

[w4rma]

1. I don't think the Senate has passed this. So, the fight will be there

(as usual)

[NewJerseyDem]

2. It passed senate appropriations committee

At first the senate appopriations committee voted down the vouchers by one vote and the deciding vote was Arlen Specter. Then, Dianne Feinstein changed her mind and supported the vouchers and one other senator also joined her and supported the voucher, I think it may have been Robert Byrd. So, it has passed the appropriations committee and looks like it will have the votes on the floor but the democrats are considering a filibuster.

[NewJerseyDem]

3. Everyone went home for the weekend

A lot of congressmen were missing for the vote. They all decided to just leave for the weekend before the votes on the vouchers. They should really be forced to show up. Kucinich has now missed some votes for the first time. I guess the debate is a good reason though.

[BrewCrew]

5. missing votes

Hey what do you know. Crazy Gephardt even made these votes.

[NewJerseyDem]

6. True

Well if Gephardt got back than I guess we should all start bashing Kucinich for missing a close vote like everyone bashed Gephardt for missing the overtime vote and head start. I guess Gephardt learned his lesson since I think that he took a lot of heat for those two votes and now he will try to show up for particularly controversial legislation. I'm really surprised about Kucinich though.

[Freddie Stubbs]

4. Five Democrats voted for this

Harold Ford, Ralph Hall, William Lipinski and Gene Taylor.

http://clerk.house.gov/cgi-bin/vote.exe?year=2003&rollnumber=478

Senator Feinstein is supporting this in the Senate.

http://www.thehill.com/story.asp?id=104

[Lydia Leftcoast]

7. How much do you want to bet...

that if Senators and Congresscritters were required to send their children to D.C. public schools, those schools would soon be the best in the nation--just as the public schools in communities where rich people predominate are the best in the nation?

Oh, and I'm not talking about money, either. I know that D.C. spends a lot per pupil. But if the Congresscritters and Senators had to send their own children there, they would soon root out the corrupt officials who mismanage the funds.