By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press Writer
August 3, 2007
WASHINGTON - House Democrats apologized Friday for wrestling
what appeared to be a winning vote away from Republicans
Thursday night, and on Friday evening agreed to an investigation.
Republicans continued to steam, however, over the episode
in which they appeared to be the winners by a 215-213 tally
on a procedural motion designed to make sure illegal immigrants
would not get certain benefits from an agriculture spending
bill.
Instead, with the tally clerk registering the final votes,
Rep. Michael McNulty, D-N.Y., gaveled the vote to a close,
saying the GOP measure had failed on a 214-214 tie.
Republicans erupted, chanting "shame, shame, shame," and
then walked out in protest after McNulty permitted further
Democrats to switch their votes to prevail 216-212. Despite
winning that tally, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., moved
for a revote as permitted under the rules, and Democrats prevailed
again.
On Friday, Hoyer apologized. "The minority was understandably
angry," he said.
Republicans prevailed upon their Democratic rivals to establish
a special panel to investigate the manner in which the vote
was handled.
Meanwhile, Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, promised
to try to prevent the House from considering further legislation
until Democrats reverse the contested vote tally. A weekend
session loomed.
Democrats changed House rules in January to disallow the practice
of holding votes open to affect the outcome. The new rule came
after Republicans routinely held open votes to twist arms,
including a 2003 episode on the Medicare prescription drug
bill in which Republicans held a vote open for three hours
until finally prevailing.
"Never once did we in the majority attempt to steal a
vote," Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va., said Friday.
The stakes on the issue involved Thursday were far smaller.
Democrats had routinely accepted comparable language on illegal
immigrants on other spending bills, but the agriculture measure
was being debated under fast-track conditions denying Republicans
a chance to offer the provision.
The contested provision was simply a restatement of current
law, and Democrats stewed that the vote on the illegal immigrant
measure was aimed chiefly at forcing swing-district Democrats
into a politically bad vote.
Also Friday, the House's electronic voting machines went haywire,
causing leaders to agree to a recess so that they could be
fixed.
If lawmakers try to go on vacation this weekend without updating
a law governing U.S. eavesdropping on foreigners, one option
for President Bush would be to call them back.
Bush said Friday he wanted Congress members to put off their
August recess until they have passed the legislation. And although
aides said it shouldn't come to this, they noted that the Constitution
gives Bush authority to call Congress into session.
He wouldn't be the first president to haul lawmakers back
to the Capitol.
According to the Senate Historical Office, presidents have
called both the Senate and the House into "extraordinary" session
23 times, on such matters as war, economic crisis and crucial
domestic legislation.
The first president to do so was John Adams in 1797, to suspend
relations with France. The most recent was Harry Truman, who
called Congress back into session in 1947 and 1948 to deal
with domestic legislation.
Other notables: James Madison called Congress back during
the War of 1812; Abraham Lincoln recalled lawmakers to deal
with the secession of Southern states. And Franklin Roosevelt
summoned Congress for the beginning of the New Deal.
Article II, Section3 of the Constitution provides that the
president "may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both
houses, or either of them."
___
Associated Press writer Laurie Kellman contributed to this
report.
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