Today the Senate will mourn the passing of its longest serving member in history, Robert Byrd (D-WV). But by week’s end, Democrats want to pass final — and unamendable — legislation, rewriting the rules that govern Wall Street. And they have no margin for error — or for losing a colleague.The Senate’s financial reform bill passed in May with four Republican votes: Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Susan Collins (R-ME), and Scott Brown (R-MA). Snowe and Collins are thought to be reliable supporters of the legislation. Grassley’s a question mark: He actually supported a filibuster of the Senate bill, before switching and voting for final passage. Brown was always thought to be the linchpin. Congressional Democrats and the White House have wooed him for weeks, and protected at least one big loophole on his behalf, in order to retain his support.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=124669