Nelson undecided on cloture vote for Wall Street reform bill
- 05/18/10 03:59 PM ET
The only Democratic senator to vote against the financial regulatory reform bill said Tuesday that he has not yet decided if he will support a key test vote on the measure.
Centrist Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) was asked if he has decided whether he will vote for cloture on the bill Wednesday. "No, I haven't," he replied.
Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) expressed confidence earlier on Tuesday that he has the 60 votes necessary to invoke cloture, which would send the financial bill toward a final vote. He made his comments after a full caucus meeting with Democratic senators Tuesday afternoon.
Democrats have 59 members in their caucus, meaning they need at least one Republican to cross the aisle in order to move forward on the bill. If Nelson opposes cloture as he did when senators voted to open debate on the bill several weeks ago, that would mean Reid would need to poach another Republican to win the vote.
Nelson said that he needs to see the list of amendments still under consideration before he makes his decision.
Democrats may not need Nelson's support to move forward. Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) predicted Tuesday that four or five Republicans would vote for cloture.
Centrist Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) was asked if he has decided whether he will vote for cloture on the bill Wednesday. "No, I haven't," he replied.
Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) expressed confidence earlier on Tuesday that he has the 60 votes necessary to invoke cloture, which would send the financial bill toward a final vote. He made his comments after a full caucus meeting with Democratic senators Tuesday afternoon.
Democrats have 59 members in their caucus, meaning they need at least one Republican to cross the aisle in order to move forward on the bill. If Nelson opposes cloture as he did when senators voted to open debate on the bill several weeks ago, that would mean Reid would need to poach another Republican to win the vote.
Nelson said that he needs to see the list of amendments still under consideration before he makes his decision.
Democrats may not need Nelson's support to move forward. Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) predicted Tuesday that four or five Republicans would vote for cloture.
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