Congress halts Zika funds as cases spread
- by Douglas Reid
- in Health Care
- — Sep 17, 2016
Speaking to reporters at the Capitol Wednesday, Senate Republican Conference Chairman John Thune (R-South Dakota) said Democrats keep blocking the legislation because they are "beholden" to "special interests".
The spending bill is the most important item on the Congressional agenda for investors, but Congress has let budget legislation come down to the wire so many times in recent years that the market may not pay much attention this time.
An Aedes aegypti mosquito is seen inside a test tube as part of a research on preventing the spread of the Zika virus and other mosquito-borne diseases at a control and prevention center in Guadalupe, neighbouring Monterrey, Mexico, March 8, 2016. But Democrats have added no "poison pills" of their own to the bill.
Senate Republicans tried yet again to get the 60 votes needed to end debate on the bill and call it up for a final vote, but fell short 52-46 as Democrats voted against it. "The person who hasn't delivered the Zika funding bill is Mitch McConnell".
The vast majority of respondents, 80 percent, said they supported passing a clean bill to fund efforts to combat the spread of Zika.
Mark Cuban Challenges Donald Trump to Defend Policies in Interview
Sit down for an interview with him and Cuban will donate $10 million to the charity of Trump's choice - or to Trump himself. Trump can't mention "the Clintons or discuss anything other than the details and facts" of his plans.
Congress failed to move forward a $1.1 billion funding package to help the country address the outbreak of Zika for the third time Tuesday, just as Florida reported seven new locally-transmitted cases of the virus.
It could change the political calculation for members who rejected the Zika bill as flawed, but want to keep the government open, Blunt said.
The World Health Organization says the outbreak of Zika remains an global health emergency and noted the virus is continuing to infect new countries. She lives in Miami, Fla., ground zero for the Zika virus in the United States.
They opposed provisions in the bill that would have blocked funding for Planned Parenthood and that would have allowed Confederate flags to fly at military veteran cemeteries.
But Ryan continued to suggest Thursday that the controversial Planned Parenthood provision is a Democratic talking point and that House Republicans won't change their stance. Marco Rubio (R) and Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Jupiter), had called for their colleagues to return from recess early to go back to working on getting the bill passed, though Congress would remain in recess for its full duration.
