WASHINGTON, April 3 (UPI) -- Republicans in the Senate have spent the week railing against Majority Leader Harry Reid, who has refused to allow additional amendments to a bill that would restore unemployment insurance payments to long-term jobless.
But a deal that would attach a "catch-all" amendment, pushed by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell that included several pet Republican issues meant to boost job creation, fell apart shortly before a cloture bill was scheduled for Thursday afternoon.
The amendment would have included approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, set up a vote on a paycheck equality bill, a proposal to block new carbon emissions rules for coal-fired plants, ditching the medical device tax under the Affordable Care Act and eliminates language in the healthcare law that defines workers as those who work at least 30 hours a week.
The Senate is voting Thursday for cloture to end debate and any chance of a filibuster. Previous test votes got the support of a handful of Republicans, enough to eke by.
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