Collins apparently agreed.
“Here we are facing an enemy that is invisible, but equally devastating to the health of our people and to the health of our economy,” Collins said. “And yet, unbelievably, the Democratic leader objected to my even being able to speak this morning. Is that what we’ve come to?”
Collins confronted Schumer separately in front of his desk and pointed her finger at him. “You are objecting to my speaking? This is appalling,” she could be heard telling Schumer.
In the meantime, Schumer kept objecting to Republicans seeking recognition on the Senate floor, prompting jeers from the GOP side of the aisle. He eventually relented and consented to the Senate taking two procedural votes by voice, which sped up the process only slightly.
The episode marked a rare moment on the Senate floor: an actual debate, with senators interrupting each other while others sat back at their desks and hissed under their breath. It was a reflection of the magnitude of the crisis and the rising pressure caused by the rapid spread of a virus that has already infected one of their own, Sen. Rand Paul, and continues to ravage the U.S. economy and roil global financial markets.
Throughout the afternoon, Republicans were lining up to speak on the Senate floor one by one, angrily chastising Schumer for continuing to block procedural votes over what Democrats see as an irresponsible corporate bailout being proposed by Republicans. Cotton harangued senators by name over their objections to the GOP-authored coronavirus bill, including Democratic senators whose states are “bankrupt.”
Despite the clashes, Senate Democrats and Trump administration officials insist they are “very close” to a deal and were engaged in active negotiations as of Monday afternoon. But that didn’t stop senators from sniping at each other with open hostility. The acrimony persisted even as senators acknowledged that the issues they were confronting were among the most serious any of them have ever faced, and that responding to the coronavirus crisis demands bipartisanship.
“The country is burning, and your side wants to play political games,” Senate Majority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) said at one point, gesturing to Democrats.
Source: politico.com
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