Sen. Jim Bunning (R-KY) is the trendsetter in the GOP for blocking temporary extensions of unemployment benefits. Early in March, he blocked Democrats’ efforts to temporarily extend unemployment insurance benefits and COBRA subsidies for several days, before finally relenting. Then, before the Senate adjourned for Easter recess just over a week ago, he backed a similar effort spearheaded by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK). That effort has caused benefits to dry up, with unemployment still over 9 percent.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=128331