Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) killed an amendment on Thursday that would have restored the military pensions that were cut in the budget deal brokered by Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI). He may now be open, however, to allowing Republican amendments to a bill that would extend the unemployment benefits that expired before the new year.
According to The Hill, a Reid spokesman, Adam Jentleson, said, “Democrats would allow some limited number of germane amendments to the bill when it comes up next week.”
“Senator Reid has continued speaking with his Republican colleagues since yesterday afternoon and informed them that he is absolutely willing for the Senate to consider a reasonable number of relevant amendments from Republicans,” Jentleson said.
As The Hill noted, Republicans want the extension in unemployment benefits to be paid for by spending offsets, and some of the GOP’s ideas include preventing illegal immigrants from getting child tax credits in addition to “prohibiting simultaneous Social Security disability insurance payments and unemployment insurance, and delaying ObamaCare.”
Republicans may use the amendment process to try to “fix” the military pensions that were slashed in the Ryan-Murray budget deal, as well.