BREAKING: It's A Tentative Deal
News reports indicate tonight that Senate Democrats have reached a tentative deal on the stimulus package that would slash $90B in spending and tax cuts.
Here's The Washington Post's story:
Word of the compromise came after President Obama stepped up pressure on Congress to pass the bill, citing new unemployment numbers to charge that further delay is "inexcusable and irresponsible."The purported agreement was reached in closed-door negotiations among a bipartisan group of senators as debate on a more than $900 billion package continued on the Senate floor.
As debate resumed on the Senate floor, a bipartisan group of nearly 20 moderates kept trying to hammer out a compromise that would attract more Republican support by cutting roughly $100 billion from the bill.
Democratic officials said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), who is battling brain cancer, may make a rare appearance on the Senate floor for the final vote. The entire caucus is scheduled to meet this afternoon for one last haggling session. Kennedy has not returned to the chamber since having a seizure during Obama's inaugural ceremonies more than two weeks ago.
"We're in the balancing business," said Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), a lead negotiator of the centrist group.
Stay tuned to see if they've reached the critical 60-vote count -- and who among the Republicans was willing to defect.