The House passed the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2009 today in a 237-192 roll call vote. That’s not quite the end of the matter though.
There’s still a nightmare scenario for Democrats: An unforeseen reneging by one of the three Republicans who helped shape the final compromise on the legislation could leave them a vote shy. And at this point, they have few if any means of changing the legislation.
But the Democratic authors of the legislation — House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank, and Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd — have both implied that the deal is done.
Frank told reporters last night that the House would not proceed to the bill, as they did today, unless they’d received the proper assurances from the Senate that the legislation would certainly pass.
Sounds like a done deal, but with the Republicans, you never know for sure.
Meanwhile, Elena Kagan sailed through her confirmation hearings.
On the military issue, the strong support that Kagan has received from Harvard graduates now serving in war zones provides a strong rebuttal to any argument that Kagan is “anti-military.” On the constitutional issues receiving the most focus–abortion, gun owners’ rights, the scope of Congress’s authority under the Commerce Clause–Kagan acknowledged the Court’s existing precedents. And on interpreting the Constitution, she set forth an approach that acknowledges the relevance of “original intent” but leaves room for other considerations such as precedent and the principles embodied in the Court’s precedent. (It will be hard for Republicans to attack this approach in view of Senator Sessions’ statements that “originalism has its limitations” and that “each theory has its limitations.”)
And both Democratic and Republican Senators said that Kagan was more forthcoming than previous nominees.
The immediate impact of this hearing will be Kagan’s confirmation as a Justice.
We may not know how good she’ll be for a few years, but for the president this has already been a good week.
Also, there’s pie.
Pie is always good. I prefer pumpkin.
Tweety or Russert?
Damn. I thought is was going to be a Gilligan’s Island theme.
You’re showing your blogging age.
Once was enough.
There is something a little Gilligan about Joke Line.
Yes the accomplishments have been good; they have been accomplished. But the Senate still hasn’t confirmed/passed either of them.
But John Boehner has delivered two on-camera soundbites that will see their way into campaign commercials this fall (hopefully including Cassoule’s). The first on Social Security and the second on the Financial Regulations bill being using a nuclear weapon on a gnat.
It was a very good week indeed.
So far…
Yep, it is more of a strong double than a home run.
Maybe someone can tack the repeal of DOMA, extension of unemployment insurance, and increasing the marginal rate tax structure on the Afghan War Supplemental.
You led me to Joke Line.
Shame on you.
Off to take a shower.
Man, don’t mess with the Glennzilla horde. Some hard core dudes laying the smack down on Klein.
In what world can Joe Klein be considered a Centrist? Someone who thinks killing 600,000 people in the search for phantom weapons of mass destruction is STILL a good idea? Someone please tell me that this is not, centrally, what the USA is all about…