2010 Unemployment Extensions - No Replacement for Byrd Yet

2010 Unemployment Extensions - All eyes have long been on the Senate to finally come up with the 60 votes necessary for cloture on the unemployment benefits extension bill. Through many iterations of the bill, and three losing tallies, the unemployed have been left hanging, waiting for the upper house to work through their differences and pass the much needed legislation.

This has made for a long couple of months for America's jobless as millions have already lost their benefits while the Senate debated - to pay or not to pay for - unemployment extensions. Some 1.7 million are now said to be without their lifeline, with several hundred thousand more to join them every week that a UI extension package is not passed.

If it weren't bad enough, several Congressional recesses have fallen right in the middle of the crucial debate, extending the agony for the jobless even more. By the last day before the Independence Day (4^th of July) recess, the Senate came just one vote short of passage of their final iteration of the bill, and the House passed another version, ready to send up the Hill for a vote.

That one missing vote for the Democrats' final version of the UI Extension bill was a result of the passing of Senator Robert Byrd (D-W. Virg.). But rather than pass one of a number of Republican versions of unemployment extensions bills and amendments that the Republicans proffered, and even refusing to accept a compromise from Senator George Voinovich (R-Ohio), Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev) chose instead to leave the unemployed to suffer for another 12 days as he shut down the Senate for the 12 day 4^th of July recess.

So now, forced to do without and to grow all the more destitute for nearly another two weeks, the unemployed are looking to the late Senator Byrd's replacement for the 60^th vote. Senator Reid is certainly banking on, too stubborn to make an economically wise compromise with the Republicans even to help the unemployed he portends to care about.

Unfortunately, the process of getting that successor for Byrd's seat in place has proved to be a roller coaster ride itself. It was first assumed West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin (D) could easily appoint someone and have him warming Byrd's chair by Monday morning, July 12, ready to throw his hand in the air for the Unemployment benefits extension.

But West Virginia law has apparently turned out to be just a tad perplexing with regard to the timing of Byrd's departure and the state's legal procedure for replacing him. Manchin, with his own political interest in the vacated Senate seat, had to wait for clarification from his Attorney General as to how and when elections for the position would ultimately take place. Thank heaven, that came quickly and so it was believed Manchin might still be able to name someone and get them to the Capitol steps, lunchbox in hand, on time.

Oh, that it were that simple. Manchin did have to wait on his state legislatures thumbs up to appoint someone but most hoped they would call an emergency session and get the job done. Unfortunately, that did not happen and now millions of American's jobless will have to wait, not on the Senate, but on the West Virginia State Legislature, to reconvene and approve Manchin's moving forward, in order to get someone to Washington to finally get UI benefits extensions moving forward. This, according to OpenCongress.org, is now not expected to happen until sometime next week.

This means no 60^th vote in the Senate on Monday to finalize cloture on the Democrats' version of unemployment extensions. It will probably come, if not later next week, maybe the next. But that means more days for the unemployed to wait. More days for people to lose benefits. More days to lose homes and apartments and wind up on the street. More days without the means to keep their power and water on. More days without the means to put food in front of their children.

OR ...

Harry Reid and the Democrats can put an end to our pain and pass one of the Republicans' versions of Unemployment Extensions or accept the compromise with Republican Senator George Voinovich for the 60^th vote first thing on Monday morning. (Read: "UI Extensions NOT Hinging on Byrd Replacement") Our fate is totally in Reid's and the Democrats' hands - It always was. Surely, after months of this and all we, the unemployed, have suffered and lost, surely the Democrats have made all the political hay out of our suffering that they can.

Guess we'll see on Monday morning.

Sources:

http://www.opencongress.org/articles/view/1970-Manchin-Holding-Off-on-Picking-Interim-Byrd-Replacement