Reid to call financial regulation vote

Reid to call financial regulation vote

With time running out for Democrats and Republicans to reach agreement on the final details of a Wall Street reform bill, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced on the floor Wednesday morning that he will call for a vote to end debate on the legislation at 2 p.m.

There is still a significant amount of work to be done — and arguments to be had on the Senate floor — before Reid's 2 p.m. deadline, and it is still not entirely clear that the majority leader has enough votes to clear his 60-vote cloture hurdle.

Tuesday afternoon Reid had said that "a number" of Republican senators told him they would vote to cut off debate, and Republican aides said they felt Democrats would be able to swing enough votes to move to the next procedural phase of the bill.

Yet very few GOP senators have stated publicly their support for cutting off debate, and even several Democrats — including Byron Dorgan of North Dakota and Ben Nelson of Nebraska — still are positioning themselves on the fence.

With this understanding, Reid emphasized the productivity of a late-night session as well as added an hour of morning business to give senators the opportunity both to air their grievances and review a consent agreement arrived at last night between the two parties.

"I would hope that senators would allow the agreement to go forward," Reid said on the floor Wednesday. "I think if people look at what's in it, I think there is a series of amendments that will be accepted by the two managers of the bill. If someone doesn't like something in that consent, be sure to talk to the two managers."

One of the notable amendments included in the agreement is to be offered by Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) on reviving the Depression Era Glass-Steagall rules designed to control speculation and impose stricter limitations on banks. Cantwell reportedly was holding out a "yes" vote on cloture unless her amendment was considered.

Top negotiators Sens. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) worked on the floor late Tuesday night trying to wrap up the legislation Reid has demanded be completed by the end of this week.

But for the consecutive second day, the majority leader — perhaps in a small concession to Republicans and Democrats reluctant to end debate Wednesday — brought up the potential for significant changes to the legislation in conference as another reason to finish the bill this week.

The formal meeting between House and Senate members and officials to iron out differences between the two chambers' bills has been viewed by some Republicans, including Shelby and Bob Corker of Tennessee, as their last chance to get their changes into the financial overhaul bill, particularly provisions on controversial derivatives language.

Reid said Wednesday that the conference would give senators "the adequate protection that they want" in voting for cloture and knowing they ultimately can be satisfied with the final bill that goes to President Barack Obama's desk.

"We have another step that we have to go through, and that's conference. People have all kinds of opportunities there to make whatever decisions they think is appropriate to have this bill better. It gives both sides all the adequate protection that they want when the bill comes back in its conference form," Reid said.

Republicans, though, could be hesitant to pull the trigger on "yes" votes for cloture, as Reid's language Wednesday about making changes post-passage echoed his message to GOP senators in asking them to end negotiations between Dodd and Shelby and open formal debate.

Since that time nearly one month ago, some key Republicans like Corker and Judd Gregg of New Hampshire have been unhappy with the direction of the legislation.

Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) expressed his dismay with the Democrats way forward with a bill he repeatedly has claimed his party wanted to support.

"At the outset of this debate, Republicans argued that getting onto the bill would be a mistake since Democrats had no intention of improving it," McConnell said on the floor Wednesday.

"As it turns out, we were right. Not only does the bill still contain a massive new government agency with broad new powers over consumer spending and Main Street businesses, it does nothing, as I indicated, to rein in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the main protagonists in the financial meltdown. This is worse than irresponsible; it's the legislative equivalent of wrongful conviction."