Senate Gears Up for Stimulus Vote

After a resounding victory in the House of Representatives, the stimulus bill now moves on to the Senate. With a decent (and possibly yet-to-grow) Democratic majority in the upper chamber, the chances of passing are in their favor. However, the Senate and the House have different versions of the stimulus bill, and the variations may have to be worked out in a conference committee. There is also the possibility of the vote being split down party lines which would still result in a Democratic victory, even if a small number of conservative Democrats vote against it. With a goal of having it signed by President Obama by mid-February, the GOP may need to come to terms with two major factors:

1. They will witness a storm of Democratic legislation be pushed though Congress with little ability to stop it.
   
2. Now being the minority party, they should reexamine their past policies on the treatment of minority parties in Congress. (Never forget how the GOP, led by Bill Frist, wanted to strip the privilege of the filibuster from the minority party in the Senate to have a cleaner path to passing their agenda.)
   

Hopes for the 111th Congress

With a strong command of the House of Representatives, the Democratic Party can easily pass legislation without Republican support, send it on to the Senate and, baring no further delays, deliver it to the President. Although many may disagree with the Democratic agenda, there is always room for compromise. However, what was witnessed in the House was purely political. The interest of politics was put over the people. This is the very reason the political climate has changed in America, and what once was convincingly a center-right country has now moved to the left. Across the country, over the past two election cycles, the people have sent Democrats to Congress in overwhelming numbers. In 2008, the Republican agenda was rejected by the electorate. This, by all accounts, was a mandate by the people for swift action. The election of Barack Obama was the catalyst.