Senate to vote on farm bill next week, president to sign it
January 30, 2014 | 06:45 PM
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., announced today that the Senate will vote on the farm bill conference report next week.
Reid’s office announced that he had filed cloture on the bill and that the cloture vote will be held Monday at 5:30 p.m.
Assuming that 60 senators vote to end debate, on Tuesday at 2:15 p.m. there will be 20 minutes remaining for final debate and closing statements, with the vote immediately following.
In the meantime, the farm bill conference report is the active business on the floor of the Senate, and senators are likely to go to the floor to make their statements on the bill. No more votes are expected this week.
Since the House passed the conference report on Wednesday, the Senate action is the last needed before the bill would go to President Barack Obama’s desk for his consideration.
During a news conference Wednesday aboard Air Force One as Obama was headed to Pittsburgh, press secretary Jay Carney signaled that the president would sign the bill.
“We are pleased by the progress that we’ve seen,” Carney said.
“As you know, the president made clear last fall that this was something that he believed Congress needed to and could act in a bipartisan way to get done. Obviously we’re not there yet. Final legislation has not reached his desk. So we await that happening and hope it does. If the bill as it is currently designed reaches his desk, he would sign it.”
Reid’s office announced that he had filed cloture on the bill and that the cloture vote will be held Monday at 5:30 p.m.
Assuming that 60 senators vote to end debate, on Tuesday at 2:15 p.m. there will be 20 minutes remaining for final debate and closing statements, with the vote immediately following.
In the meantime, the farm bill conference report is the active business on the floor of the Senate, and senators are likely to go to the floor to make their statements on the bill. No more votes are expected this week.
Since the House passed the conference report on Wednesday, the Senate action is the last needed before the bill would go to President Barack Obama’s desk for his consideration.
During a news conference Wednesday aboard Air Force One as Obama was headed to Pittsburgh, press secretary Jay Carney signaled that the president would sign the bill.
“We are pleased by the progress that we’ve seen,” Carney said.
“As you know, the president made clear last fall that this was something that he believed Congress needed to and could act in a bipartisan way to get done. Obviously we’re not there yet. Final legislation has not reached his desk. So we await that happening and hope it does. If the bill as it is currently designed reaches his desk, he would sign it.”
