Seeing conservative stalwarts Jim DeMint, Rand Paul, Mike Lee, Pat Toomey, and David Vitter team up with liberal stalwart Bernie Sanders on the Nay aide was not the oddest mix in yesterday’s vote reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank — the far Left and far Right often join forces against corporate welfare.
More notable was the cadre of Republican leaders joining the Tea Party rabble-rousers DeMint, Paul, and Lee in the minority of Republicans opposing reauthorization. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Minority Whip Jon Kyl, Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, and National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman John Cornyn all voted against Ex-Im.
- Other moderate/establishment members voting Nay included Orrin Hatch (thank you, Dan Liljenquist), and John McCain, who is a consistently fights against corporate welfare.
- All the “Tea Party” freshmen joined the DeMint/Paul/Lee squad: Ron Johnson, Pat Toomey, Marco Rubio. The one non-Tea Party freshman to vote Nay was Jim Risch.
- All the other non Tea-Party Freshmen voted for Ex-Im: Kelly Ayotte, Roy Blunt, John Boozman, Dan Coats, Dean Heller, Jerry Moran, and Rob Portman.
- Conservative Republicans who nevertheless voted Aye: Tom Coburn and Jeff Sessions.
A footnote: Bernie Sanders’ Nay vote puts him at odds with the liberal Nation magazine, which derided Ex-Im’s opponents earlier this year.
