A unanmimous senate and a 3 to 1 House isn't backing down, mate. The last thing to pass so dramatically was called the Patriot Act.
On Dec 22, 10:35 pm, Tommy News <[email protected]> wrote: > Senate Passes 9/11 Health Bill as Republicans Back Down > > Brendan Smialowski for The New York Times > Wendy Flammia with a photo of her friend Jenn McNamara’s husband, John > McNamara, a New York City firefighter and 9/11 responder who later > died of cancer, at a news conference Wednesday on Capitol Hill. > > By RAYMOND HERNANDEZ > Published: December 22, 2010 > Twitter > Sign In to E-Mail > > Print > > Reprints > > Share > CloseLinkedinDiggMixxMySpaceYahoo! BuzzPermalink WASHINGTON — After > years of fierce lobbying and debate, Congress approved a bill on > Wednesday to cover the cost of medical care for rescue workers and > others who became sick from toxic fumes, dust and smoke after the 2001 > attack on the World Trade Center. > > Related > Post a Comment > The House Vote > The Caucus: G.O.P. Finds Itself in a Corner Over 9/11 Bill Stance > (December 22, 2010) > 9/11 Health Bill Wins Support From G.O.P. (December 19, 2010) > Times Topic: 9/11 Health and Environmental IssuesThe $4.3 billion bill > cleared its biggest hurdle early in the afternoon when the Senate > unexpectedly approved it just 12 days after Republican senators had > blocked a more expensive House version from coming to the floor of the > Senate for a vote. > > In recent days, Republican senators had been under fire for their > opposition to the legislation. > > The House quickly passed the Senate bill a few hours later, as was > widely expected. The vote was 206 to 60, breaking down largely along > party lines. The White House said President Obama would sign the bill > into law. > > After the Senate vote, a celebration broke out in a room in the > Capitol that was packed with emergency workers and 9/11 families, as > well as the two senators from New York, Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten > E. Gillibrand, and the two senators from New Jersey, Frank R. > Lautenberg and Robert Menendez. The senators, all Democrats, were > greeted with a huge ovation and repeated chants of “U.S.A.! U.S.A.!” > > Mr. Schumer, the state’s senior senator, allowed Ms. Gillibrand to > address the group first, in apparent deference to the role she took in > the Senate on the 9/11 legislation. > > “Our Christmas miracle has arrived,” she said to applause and cheers. > > “To the firefighters here, the police officers here, everyone involved > in the recovery, all the volunteers, the family members: Thank you!” > she continued. “It was your work, it was your heroism, it was your > dedication that made the difference. It was your effort, coming here > week after week to tell senators and Congress members about your > stories and what you went through.” > > The votes came after prolonged aggressive lobbying by top New York > officials and lawmakers, police and firefighter groups and 9/11 > families, who argued that the nation had a moral obligation to provide > medical assistance to rescue workers who spent days, weeks and even > months at ground zero. > > In a reminder of the bill’s long road to passage, Secretary of State > Hillary Rodham Clinton, who sponsored the legislation when she > represented New York in the Senate, was coincidentally at the Capitol > on Wednesday for a Senate vote on ratification of the New Start treaty > > The 9/11 health measure calls for providing $1.8 billion over the next > five years to monitor and treat injuries stemming from exposure to > toxic dust and debris at ground zero; New York City would pay 10 > percent of these costs. > > There are nearly 60,000 people enrolled in health-monitoring and > treatment programs related to the 9/11 attack. The federal government > currently provides the bulk of the financing for these programs. > > The legislation adopted on Wednesday also sets aside $2.5 billion to > reopen the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund for five years to > provide payment for job and economic losses. > > In a statement released by City Hall, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg > hailed the passage of the legislation, saying it “affirms our nation’s > commitment to protecting those who protect us all.” > > The bill was adopted during a flurry of activity as lawmakers rushed > to adjourn for the year. It was a major turn of events since the bill > appeared to have fallen victim to partisan squabbling and rancor. > > In September, after years of negotiation and debate, the House passed > legislation that called for providing $7.4 billion over eight years to > cover the medical care of 9/11 rescue workers and others. But this > month, Republicans derailed that legislation in the Senate, expressing > concern about its cost. > > By Wednesday, Senate Republicans budged, following a barrage of > criticism over the last few days — not just from Democrats, but also > from allies, including former Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani of New York > and conservative news outlets like Fox News. The 9/11 health care > issue also became a cause of Jon Stewart, who used the platform of his > program, “The Daily Show,” to bring national attention to the bill. > > Before agreeing to lift their opposition, Senate Republicans managed > to get Democrats to scale back the size of the original House bill. > > The Senate adopted the legislation by a voice vote, eliminating the > need for a recorded vote, as lawmakers rushed to bring the > Congressional session to a close. > > One of the main critics of the original House bill, Senator Tom > Coburn, Republican of Oklahoma, expressed satisfaction with the > legislation’s final cost. > > “Every American recognizes the heroism of the 9/11 first responders,” > Mr. Coburn said. “But it is not compassionate to help one group while > robbing future generations of opportunity.” > > Still, the acrimonious fight over the 9/11 legislation appeared to > leave Republicans on the defensive and concerned that their party had > been unfairly demonized for raising legitimate objections to the > original $7.4 billion bill the House passed. > > “Some have tried to portray this debate as a debate between those who > support 9/11 workers and those who don’t,” said Senator Mitch > McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader. “This is a gross > distortion of the facts. There was never any doubt about supporting > the first responders. It was about doing it right.” > > In the House, there was some disappointment among Democrats over the > deal cut in the Senate. But many concluded that the Senate bill was > the best they could get at the moment. > > “This compromise isn’t everything we wanted,” Representative Carolyn > B. Maloney, Democrat of New York, a chief sponsor of the original > legislation, said. “But in the end we got a strong program that will > save lives.” > > The bill is formally known as the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and > Compensation Act, named after a New York police detective who took > part in the rescue efforts at ground zero and later developed > breathing complications. He died in January 2006. The cause of his > death became a source of debate after the city’s medical examiner > concluded that it was not directly related to the attack. > > The legislation allows for money from the Victims’ Compensation Fund > to be paid to any eligible claimant who receives a payment under the > settlement of lawsuits that more than 10,000 rescue and cleanup > workers recently reached with the city. Currently, those who receive a > settlement are limited in how much compensation they can get from the > fund. > > In New York, a federal judge told lawyers for the 10,000 that payments > from the settlement must start going out by late January. The judge, > Alvin K. Hellerstein of United States District Court in Manhattan, > worked out a timetable with the lawyers so that the settlement terms, > which call for payments of at least $625 million, become final within > the next two weeks. > > More:http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/23/nyregion/23health.html?partner=rss&;... > > More:http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/23/nyregion/23health.html?partner=rss&;... > > -- > Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time. > Have a great day, > Tommy -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
