WASHINGTON – Here’s how area members of Congress voted on major roll calls in the week ending Friday.
HOUSE
Intelligence, torture: Members failed, 225-188, to reach a two-thirds majority for overriding President Bush’s veto of a 2008 intelligence budget that requires the CIA to obey the Army Field Manual’s ban on prisoner torture. Bush said the CIA uses legal interrogations. A yes vote was to enact HR 2082.
Voting yes: Jay Inslee, D-Bainbridge Island; Rick Larsen, D-Lake Stevens; Brian Baird, D-Belfair; Norm Dicks, D-Belfair; Jim McDermott, D-Seattle; Adam Smith, D-Tacoma.
Voting no: Doc Hastings, R-Pasco; Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Deer Lake; Dave Reichert, R-Auburn.
Outside ethics panel: House members voted, 229-182, to set up an outside panel to help police their ethical conduct. Each party would name three private citizens to the unit, which would start investigations and refer its findings to the Ethics Committee. A yes vote was to adopt H Res 1031.
Voting yes: Inslee, Larsen, Dicks, McDermott, Smith.
Voting no: Baird, Hastings, McMorris Rodgers, Reichert.
Ethics dispute: Members advanced, 207-206, a measure (H Res 1031, above) establishing an outside ethics office. This was the pivotal vote on whether to authorize the unit. Had they won this vote, foes then would have killed the proposal. A yes vote backed creation of the ethics office.
Voting yes: Inslee, Larsen, Dicks, McDermott, Smith.
Voting no: Baird, Hastings, McMorris Rodgers, Reichert.
Community service: Members voted, 277-140, to renew community service programs such as the National Civilian Community Corps, Volunteers in Service to America, Senior Corps and AmeriCorps. A yes vote was to pass HR 5563, which budgets $6.2 billion over five years for service programs.
Voting yes: Inslee, Larsen, Baird, Dicks, McDermott, Reichert, Smith.
Voting no: Hastings, McMorris Rodgers.
New spy bill: Members extended, 213-197, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act through 2009. The bill (HR 3773) requires warrants for spying on Americans but not for foreign spying. A yes vote backed a bill that entitles telecommunications companies to secret court hearings to defend against lawsuits.
Voting yes: Inslee, Larsen, Baird, Dicks, Smith.
Voting no: Hastings, McMorris Rodgers, McDermott, Reichert.
2009-2013 budget: Members passed, 212-207, a five-year Democratic budget (HCR 312) that for 2009 projects $3.06 trillion in spending, a $340.4 billion deficit and $216.8 billion in interest on U.S. debt. A yes vote backed a budget that would allow Bush’s top-bracket tax cuts to expire.
Voting yes: Inslee, Larsen, Baird, Dicks, McDermott, Smith.
Voting no: Hastings, McMorris Rodgers, Reichert.
GOP budget: Members rejected, 157-263, a GOP budget that differed from the Democrats’ plan (HCR 312, above) by making Bush’s tax cuts permanent and cutting unnamed domestic programs by $800 billion over five years. A yes vote backed a plan with entitlement restraints.
Voting yes: Hastings, McMorris Rodgers.
Voting no: Inslee, Larsen, Baird, Dicks, McDermott, Reichert, Smith.
SENATE
Ban on earmarks: Senators failed, 29-71, to ban earmarks from the fiscal 2009 budget (S Con Res 70). A yes vote was to impose a one-year ban on earmarks, which are the pet projects lawmakers slip into spending bills, without review, to benefit constituents or campaign donors.
Voting no: Maria Cantwell, D; Patty Murray, D.
2009-2013 budget: Senators passed, 51-44, a U.S. budget for 2009-2013 that fully funds Bush’s defense and security requests, exceeds his domestic spending requests and allows his tax cuts for top-bracket taxpayers to expire in 2011. A yes vote was to approve the budget plan (SCR 70).
Voting yes: Cantwell, Murray.
Middle-class tax cuts: Senators voted, 99-1, to make permanent middle-class tax cuts that are set to expire after 2010. A yes vote backed an amendment to SCR 70 (above) extending measures such as the child-care tax credit, the 10 percent bracket and relief from the marriage penalty.
Voting yes: Cantwell, Murray.
Expiring tax cuts: Senators failed, 58-40, to reach 60 votes needed to apply pay-as-you-go budget rules in SCR 70 (above) to tax-code changes as well as spending increases. A yes vote backed a GOP bid to make it harder for Democrats to allow top-bracket tax cuts to expire.
Voting yes: Cantwell.
Voting no: Murray.
KEY VOTES AHEAD
Congress is in Easter recess until the week of March 31.
