President Clinton stood up to Wall Street on Dec. 19 when he vetoed a bill sought by securities dealers that would make it more difficult for stockholders to sue brokers, underwriters, accountants and company officials. Then Connecticut Senator Christopher Dodd, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, led the effort to give the securities dealers their early Christmas present as he lined up Democratic votes to override.
In the end, when the Senate voted 68-30 to override on Dec. 22, only 30 of the 46 Democrats sided with Clinton, who felt the bill should be redrafted to provide more protection for investors. Admittedly, securities torts is not a hot-button populist issue and many progressives felt the bill reflected a compromise, but the White House had raised legitimate questions, albeit at the last minute, over how the "reforms" might be applied against consumers.
The Senate currently has 53 Republicans and 46 Democrats, with one vacant seat. To regain the Senate in 1996, Democrats must hold their own among the 15 incumbents now held by Democrats that are up for election, win four of the 18 seats now held by Republicans and pick up the Oregon seat that is vacant due to the resignation of Sen. Bob Packwood.
Votes like the Dec. 22 override make some progressive Democrats wonder why they bother, but a tally of 10 key votes during 1994 in the Senate, published by Americans for Democratic Action, show that there is a wide gulf between Republicans and Democrats on issues such as striker replacement, earned income tax credits for the working poor, middle-income tax relief, education spending, worker safety, job training, living wages, military spending and health coverage for federal workers.
At least four of the Republican seats will be open due to the retirement of Hank Brown of Colorado, Mark Hatfield of Oregon, Nancy Kassebaum of Kansas and Alan Simpson of Wyoming. They had scores on workers' issues of zero, 10, 10 and 10, respectively--and Hatfield and Kassebaum are considered moderate Republicans. Eight Democratic retirees include Paul Simon of Illinois and Bill Bradley of New Jersey, both with 100-percent records for workers; Claiborne Pell of Rhode Island with 90; Arkansas' David Pryor, 70; Bennett Johnston in Louisiana, 60; Howell Heflin of Alabama and James Exon of Nebraska, 50; and Sam Nunn, going home to Georgia with 30.
Democrats seeking re-election include 100-percenters Tom Harkin in Iowa and Paul Wellstone in Minnesota, 90 percenters Carl Levin in Michigan, John Kerry in Massachusetts and Jay Rockefeller in West Virginia, Max Baucus of Montana with 80 and Joe Biden of Delaware with 70. (Baucus, Harkin, Kerry and Rockefeller voted to override the securities tort veto.
Vulnerable Republican incumbents include three-term Sen. Larry Pressler, a zero from South Dakota, who is expected to face Democratic Rep. Tim Johnson, who has been elected at large from the state since 1986. In Virginia, 10-percenter Sen. John Warner is expected to face a strong GOP primary challenger who could soften up the incumbent for a Democratic challenger. Democrats also have hopes to take out interim Sen. Jim Inhofe, a 10-percenter from Oklahoma; Strom Thurmond, who at 93 is granddaddy of the zeroes from South Carolina; as well as first-term zero Bob Smith of New Hampshire and two-term zero Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
Challengers against the two most detested men in the Senate should give progressives cause for hope: Longtime zero Jesse Helms, a one-man wrecking crew as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is expected to face a strong challenge in North Carolina, possibly from Harvey Gantt, the former mayor of Charlotte whom Helms narrowly defeated in 1990.
Several Democrats, including progressive Rep. John Bryant of Dallas and moderate Rep. Jim Chapman of Sulphur Springs, have set their sights on challenging Phil Gramm, the zero-who-would-be-king from Texas, whose presidential campaign has been struggling to get out of single digits in the polls. (That would be comforting if he were not the likely heir of all the other also-running zeroes in the GOP presidential race. Still, an August poll showed Gramm with only a narrow lead over Bob Dole in Texas, while 81 percent of Texans disapproved of Gramm running for re-election and president at the same time.
These Senate votes on issues of interest to workers and middle-class Americans were put together by Americans for Democratic Action. Contact 202-885-5980. For more information on your Congress members' voting records, call toll-free Project Vote Smart, at the nonpartisan the Center for National Independence in Politics, at 1-800-622-SMART
Vote descriptions
1. BRIDGESTONE-FIRESTONE/STRIKER REPLACEMENT S2. Congressional Compliance. Kassebaum (R-KS) motion to kill Simon (D-IL) amendment to express the sense of the Senate that Bridgestone-Firestone should reconsider its decision to hire permanent replacement workers and return to the bargaining table. Motion agreed to 56-23: Jan. 6, 1995. (N = +)
2. STRIKER REPLACEMENT HR889. Fiscal 1995 Defense Supplemental Appropriations. Motion to limit debate on the Kassebaum (R-KS) amendment to block the implementation of a presidential executive order barring federal contractors from permanently replacing striking workers. Motion rejected 58-39: (Three-fifths of the total Senate (60) is required to invoke cloture.) March 15, 1995. (N = +)
3. EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT SConRes13. Fiscal 1996 Budget Resolution. Exon (D-NE) motion to support Bradley (D-NJ) amendment to allow the earned-income tax credit (EITC) to continue to grow at its current rate by transferring $16.9 billion over seven years to the EITC from the $170 billion that would be freed for tax cuts if Congress passed a reconciliation bill big enough to balance the budget by 2002. Motion rejected 47-53: May 23, 1995. (Y = +)
4. MIDDLE INCOME WORKERS RELIEF SConRes13. Fiscal 1996 Budget Resolution Exon (D-NE) motion to support the Boxer (D-CA) amendment to establish a 60-vote point of order against tax cuts unless 90 percent of the benefits went to working families with annual incomes less than $100,000. Motion rejected 46-54: May 24, 1995. (Y = +)
5. INCREASED EDUCATION SPENDING SConRes13. Fiscal 1996 Budget Resolution Domenici (R-NM) motion to kill Kennedy (D-MA) amendment to increase spending on education by $28 billion over seven years by closing corporate tax loopholes. Motion agreed to 54-45: May 25, 1995. (N = +)
6. WORKER SAFETY S343. Regulatory Overhaul - Occupational Safety Regulations. Kassenbaum (R-KS) motion to kill Kennedy (D-MA) amendment to exempt occupational safety and health regulations and mine safety and health regulations from risk assessment and cost-benefit analysis requirements. Motion agreed to 58-39: July 14, 1995. (N = +)
7. JOB TRAINING HR1944. Fiscal 1995 Supplemental Appropriations and Rescissions Hatfield (R-OR) motion to kill Wellstone (D-MN) amendment to restore $332.3 million for eight education and job training programs offset by a corresponding cut in the travel and administrative accounts of the Defense Department. Motion agreed to 65-32: July 21, 1995. (N = +)
8. MINIMUM WAGE S908. State Dept. Authorization Kassebaum (R-KS) motion to kill Kennedy (D-MA) amendment to express the sense of Senate that the Senate should hold votes on raising the minimum wage and on comprehensive welfare reform in this session of Congress. Motion agreed to 49-48: July 31, 1995. (N = +)
9. USING MILITARY SPENDING CUTS FOR SOCIAL PROGRAMS S1026. FY1996 Defense Authorization Bumpers (D-AR) amendment to eliminate so-called fire walls between defense and non-defense discretionary spending in FY1996 budget resolution (HConRes67). Motion rejected 37-63: Aug. 4. (Y = +)
10. HEALTH COVERAGE/ABORTIONS FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYEES HR2020. Fiscal 1996 Treasury-Postal Appropriations Mikulski (D-MD) amendment to allow federal employees or their families to receive abortion services through their federal health insurance policies when the life of the woman would be endangered or in cases of rape or incest or where abortion is determined to be medically necessary. Rejected 45-49: Aug. 5, 1995. (Y = +) n n n
Americans for Democratic Action
American Workers Voting Record
United States Senate
January-August 1995
States in bold face have Senate elections coming up. Senators who are stepping down are marked "ret." and senators who are seeking re-election are marked "up".
SUPPORT Position: N N Y Y N N N N Y Y
Vote Number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 WQ
Alabama
Heflin H (D-ret) ? + + + + - - + - - 50
Shelby R (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Alaska
Stevens T (R-up) - - - - - - - - - ? 0
Murkowski F (R) - - - - - - - ? - ? 0
Arizona McCain J (R) ? - - - - - - - - - 0
Kyl J (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Arkansas
Bumpers D (D) ? - + + + + + + + ? 70
Pryor D (D-ret.) - - + + + + + + + ? 70
California
Feinstein D (D) - + + + + + + + - + 80
Boxer B (D) ? + + + + + + + + + 90
Colorado
Brown H (R-ret.) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Campbell B (R) ? - - - - - + + - + 30
Connecticut
Dodd C (D) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Lieberman J (D) ? + + - + + - + - + 60
Delaware
Roth W (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Biden J (D-up) ? + + + + + - + + - 70
Florida
Graham B (D) - + + + + + - + - + 70
Mack C (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Georgia
Nunn S (D-ret.) ? - + + - - - + - - 30
Coverdell P (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Hawaii
Inouye D (D) - + + + + + ? + - + 70
Akaka D (D) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Idaho
Craig L (R-up) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Kempthorne D (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Illinois
Simon P (D-ret.) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Moseley-Braun C (D) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Indiana
Lugar R (R) - - - - - ? - - - ? 0
Coats D (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Iowa
Grassley C (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Harkin T (D-up) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Kansas
Dole B (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Kassebaum N (R-ret.) - - - - - - - - - + 10
Kentucky
Ford W (D) ? + + + + - - + - - 50
McConnell M (R-up) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Louisiana
Johnston J (D-ret.) - + + + + - - + + - 60
Breaux J (D) - + + + + - - + + - 60
Maine
Cohen W (R) - - - - - - + - - + 20
Snowe O (R) - - - + - - + - - + 30
Maryland
Sarbanes P (D) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Mikulski B (D) + + + + ? + - + + + 80
Massachusetts
Kennedy E (D) ? + + + + + + + + + 90
Kerry J (D-up) ? + + + + + + + + + 90
Michigan Levin C (D-up) ? + + + + + + + + + 90
Abraham S (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Minnesota
Wellstone P (D-up) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Grams R (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Mississippi
Cochran T (R-up) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Lott T (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Missouri
Bond C (R) ? - - - - - - - - - 0
Ashcroft J (R) - - - - - - ? - - - 0
Montana
Baucus M (D-up) + + + + - - + + + + 80
Burns C (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Nebraska
Exon J (D-ret.) + - + + + + - ? - - 50
Kerrey B (D) ? + + + + + - - - + 60
Nevada
Reid H (D) - + + + + + - + + - 70
Bryan R (D) - + + + + + - + - + 70
New Hampshire
Smith R (R-up) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Gregg J (R) - - - - - - - - - ? 0
New Jersey
Bradley B (D-ret.) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Lautenberg F (D) + + + + + + + + + + 100
New Mexico
Domenici P (R-up) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Bingaman J (D) ? + + + + ? + + + + 80
New York
Moynihan D (D) + + + + + + + + + + 100
D'Amato A (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
North Carolina
Helms J (R-up) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Faircloth L (R) - - - - - - ? - - - 0
North Dakota
Conrad K (D) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Dorgan B (D) + + + + + + - + + + 90
Ohio
Glenn J (D) + + + + + ? + + - + 80
DeWine M (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Oklahoma
Nickles D (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Inhofe J (R-up) + - - - - - - - - - 10
Oregon
Hatfield M (R-ret.) - - - - - - - - + - 10
(Packwood/Vacant) - - - - - - - - - + 10
Pennsylvania
Specter A (R) ? - - - - + - + + + 40
Santorum R (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Rhode Island
Pell C (D-ret.) + ? + + + + + + + + 90
Chafee J (R) - - - - + - - - - + 20
South Carolina
Thurmond S (R-up) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Hollings E (D) ? - + + + - + + + + 70
South Dakota
Pressler L (R-up) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Daschle T (D) + + + + + + - + + + 90
Tennessee
Thompson F (R-up) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Frist B (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Texas
Gramm P (R-up) ? - - - - - - ? - - 0
Hutchison K (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Utah
Hatch O (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Bennett R (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Vermont
Leahy P (D) ? + + + + + + + + + 90
Jeffords J (R) - ? + - + + - + + + 60
Virginia
Warner J (R-up) - - - - - - - + - - 10
Robb C (D) ? + + + + + + + - + 80
Washington
Gorton S (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Murray P (D) + ? + + + + + + + + 90
West Virginia
Byrd R (D) + + + + + + - + + + 90
Rockefeller J (D-up) ? + + + + + + + + + 90
Wisconsin
Kohl H (D) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Feingold R (D) + + + + + + + + + + 100
Wyoming
Simpson A (R-ret.) - - - - - - - - - + 10
Thomas C (R) - - - - - - - - - - 0
Vote Number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 WQ
KEY --
P VOTED PRESENT
C VOTED PRESENT TO AVOID POSSIBLE CONFLICT OF INTEREST
? DID NOT VOTE
I NOT ELIGIBLE MEMBER
WQ WORKERS QUOTIENT