Message #41415

[Mark]

Filibuster the House CR? Cruz, Other Conservatives Say ‘Yes’ (Updated)

Updated 1:20 p.m. | Sen. Ted Cruz said Friday that Republican senators should, in effect, filibuster the House-passed continuing resolution in the Senate.
 
The Texas Republican is calling on his colleagues to oppose limiting debate on it, warning against what he calls procedural trickery.
 
“Step two is the Senate, where all accounts suggest Harry Reid plans to use procedural gimmicks to try to add funding back in for Obamacare,” Cruz said. “If Reid pursues this plan — if he insists on using a 50-vote threshold to fund Obamacare with a partisan vote of only Democrats — then I hope that every Senate Republican will stand together and oppose cloture on the bill in order to keep the House bill intact and not let Harry Reid add Obamacare funding back in.”
 
“Now is a time for party unity; Senate Republicans should stand side-by-side with courageous House Republicans,” Cruz said.

dont get your hopes up
 

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky, dismisses Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, strategy on defunding Obamacare - @CNN

3 House Republicans propose legislation that requires federal healthcare officials to sign up for Obamacare - @thehill

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, to vote for House-passed bill that defunds Obamacare, breaks with Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, strategy - @KellyO

Cruz Loses Support for Anti-Obamacare Tactic

U.S. Senate candidate Ted Cruz speaks to a cheerful crowd after he defeated Republican rival, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst in a runoff election for ...
http://swampland.time.com/2013/09/24/cruz-loses-support-for-anti-obamacare-tactic/

Mitch McConnell, John Cornyn won’t back Ted Cruz Obamacare tactic

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell will not join an effort in the Senate to block a House-passed spending bill that defunds Obamacare, a spokesman for McConnell said Monday.
 
“Sen. McConnell supports the House Republicans’ bill and will not vote to block it, since it defunds Obamacare and funds the government without increasing spending by a penny. He will also vote against any amendment that attempts to add Obamacare funding back into the House Republicans’ bill,” said Don Stewart, a spokesman for the Republican senator.

The statement represents a divergence from the approach favored by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Mike Lee (R-Utah), who want Republicans to oppose a procedural vote on the House bill before Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) plans to strip out the Obamacare defunding provision by a majority vote.
 
“If and when the majority leader goes down that path, Washington Democrats will have to decide — without hiding behind a procedural vote — whether or not to split with their leadership and join Republicans and their constituents in opposing the re-insertion of Obamacare funding into the House-passed bill,” Stewart added.
 
A spokeswoman for McConnell’s top lieutenant, Minority Whip John Cornyn of Texas, said that Cornyn too will break with Cruz and Lee.
 
“Sen. Cornyn will not block a bill that defunds Obamacare,” the spokeswoman said.


Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/09/mitch-mcconnell-john-cornyn-ted-cruz-obamacare-97228.html#ixzz2fppNri6v