Partisan positions harden as Senate eyes stimulus vote

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By David R. Sands and Kara Rowland

The partisanship that marked the House fight over President Obama's $819 billion economic stimulus plan carried over to the Senate Thursday, with both Democrats and Republicans insisting the other side needed more flexibility.

Senate Republicans appear to be on the same page as their House colleagues, all 177 of whom voted against the massive package of new spending and tax cuts that passed Wednesday. A group of Republican senators Thursday slammed congressional Democrats for shutting them out of the process of writing the Senate's version of the bill.

"There is a growing and grim recognition within our conference that there's very little likelihood of a significant change in this colossal spending bill," said Sen. Jeff Sessions, Alabama Republican. "And so we need to resist this package with everything that we have."

Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl, Arizona Republican, said "Republicans have appreciated the president's outreach to present ideas."

But, he added, "we are too often met with this response: 'We won and therefore we're going to do it our way.' That's true and they can do that if they want to — they can cram down a stimulus package without Republican support."

Mr. Kyl, at a press conference Thursday with nearly a dozen of his colleagues, said Senate Republicans would "rather have the input now to make sure this package works."

But Sen. Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, accused House Minority Leader John A. Boehner, Ohio Republican, of "leading his Republicans off a cliff" is pressuring his caucus to reject Mr. Obama's plan en masse.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, said he still hoped for Republican votes in favor of the Senate bill, noting that President Obama had come to Capitol Hill to lobby congressional Republicans personally for their support. But Mr. Reid, whose party holds a 58-41 majority in the Senate, made clear he was determined to pass the stimulus bill quickly regardless of Republican support.

"If we don't [get Republican votes], it won't be our fault for not trying," he said.

Congressional Democrats still say they hope to see some Republican defections in support of the final bill, which includes broad tax cuts and spending projects for every congressional district in the country. The White House stepped up the pressure Thursday by releasing projections on how much each state would receive from the stimulus bill.