Senate Passes Bipartisan Budget Bill

The Senate has signed off on the budget agreement hashed out between Congressman Paul Ryan and Senator Patty Murray.

Senators voted 64 to 36 to approve the bipartisan budget agreement Wednesday afternoon. Nine Republicans joined with 55 Democrats to approve the legislation, which Obama is expected to sign before departing this weekend for his Christmas vacation in Hawaii.

The Republican senators who joined with Democrats were Saxby Chambliss (Ga.), Susan Collins (Maine), Orrin G. Hatch (Utah), John Hoeven (N.D.), Johnny Isakson (Ga.), Ronald Johnson (Wis.), John McCain (Ariz.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Rob Portman (Ohio).

Three Republicans who voted to end formal debate on the budget on Tuesday voted Wednesday against the final budget agreement: Sens. Lamar Alexander (Tenn.), Roy Blunt (Mo.) and Jeff Flake (Ariz.)…

Although the agreement sailed through the House on a landslide vote, problems quickly cropped up in the Senate. Potential GOP presidential hopefuls, including Sens. Marco Rubio (Fla.), Rand Paul (Ky.) and Ted Cruz (Tex.), opposed it because it would increase spending now in exchange for the promise of budget cuts later.

By: Alan

Alan Colmes is the publisher of Liberaland.