The latest on the US debt ceiling deal
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Republican Leader Mitch McConnell have made it clear they want to move ahead with a vote on the debt agreement bill as early as Thursday – but would need an agreement from all 100 senators to do so.
If the House passes the legislation Wednesday evening, Schumer would take a procedural step to bypass committee and bring the bill straight to the floor. In order to meet the deadline, however, senators will need to find a time agreement, which both sides are optimistic can happen.
How quickly is the question.
All 100 senators must agree on a timeline before the vote can begin. Otherwise, any single senator can hold up the vote.
McConnell said Wednesday he hopes that the Senate can be done voting before the weekend if the House passes the bill Wednesday evening.
Amendments: Senators will be allowed to offer amendments to the bill. However, Schumer said Wednesday he does not want to have to send the bill back to the House — meaning that no amendment can actually pass.
Amendments will be offered by senators from both sides of the aisle, but all 100 members must agree to schedule a vote on an amendment.
The bill is expected to get more than 60 votes and overcome a filibuster attempt.
Opposition: Several Republicans and a handful of Democrats have already said they will oppose the bill. A number of senators from both parties also told CNN they are still reviewing it.
Some Senate Republicans said they are concerned about the defense number being too low. That was an issue that was raised Sunday night on a private conference call by Mississippi Republican Sen. Roger Wicker and Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, is a “no.” Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley is also opposed.
Source: CNN
