Parties spar over start of reform debate

WASHINGTON, April 22 (UPI) -- Democrats and Republicans in Washington sparred over an attempt to begin debate on a massive financial reform bill Thursday.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said time was up, attempting to sway Republicans to proceed with a floor debate on the issue.

"I'm not ready to waste any more time of the American people," he said, The New York Times reported Thursday.

His counterpart, Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said informal negotiations to close the gap between the parties were making progress and should be allowed to proceed.

Reid has said he would call for a procedural vote Monday, a tactic that would put Republicans in a corner, as votes against the debate could appear as if they were obstructing progress while emotions are running high.

U.S. President Barack Obama in a speech Thursday in New York said Wall Street executives had forgotten the billion-dollar deals they strike affect average citizens.

Before the speech, Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala, said, "I'm more optimistic than I've ever been. I think we can put a bill together pretty soon," The Washington Post reported.

Reid on Wednesday hailed an Agriculture Committee vote to regulate derivative trading as a "bipartisan committee vote," after one Republican -- Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa -- voted to approve the measure, the Times said.