The U.S. Senate on Tuesday adjourned for the year, clearing a massive spending bill, dozens of judges, many executive branch nominees and a significant tax cut bill during the post-election lame duck session.
Senate lawmakers left town Tuesday without considering the terrorism risk insurance legislation, electing to put off a vote until 2015. Lawmakers were prepared to vote on the bill, but Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla, objected, a move that would delay consideration for days.
With the House already gone for the year, Congress stands adjourned until Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015.
Democrats decided that rather than wait out the clock on Coburn’s objection, they would adjourn instead, leaving the problem for the new Congress to solve. The current authorization for the law expires at the end of the year.
The program provides a federal backstop for insurance companies, who otherwise would avoid insuring property and big venues, such as sporting events, against damage and loss caused by terrorism.
“Tonight, Sen. Coburn struck the final blow when he objected to bringing the bill to the floor,” Sen Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said.
Coburn said he opposed a provision in the bill that does not allow states to opt out. Liberal Democrats including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., were against a provision in the bill that rolled back a Wall Street banking reform, though they did not try to block the measure.
The Senate wrapped up business several days after the House adjourned. In the upper chamber, the closing gavel marked the end to the eight-year rein of the Democratic Party.
It also signaled the conclusion of a particularly contentious Congress, where the partisan divide between the GOP-led House and Democratic-controlled Senate made it difficult to pass significant legislation.
Republicans will take the Senate majority in January.
One of the Senate’s final moves was a voice vote on a batch of judges, some of the dozens they confirmed in a frenzy of voting that began on Saturday.
In total, the Senate confirmed 72 Obama nominees since last Friday, a much higher number than either party expected. It was a victory for the outgoing Democratic majority and a blow to Republicans, who objected to several of the nominees but were unable to block them under new Senate rules that allow confirmations with just 51 votes.
Among the confirmations was Obama’s pick for surgeon general, Vivek Murthy, who Republicans opposed because of his anti-gun stance.
Republicans partly blamed Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, for the crush of Democratic confirmations.
Cruz on Friday objected to the Democratic plan that would have adjourned the Senate until Monday, when lawmakers planned to consider a $1.1 trillion spending package.
Cruz was demanding a vote on a point of order against the bill declaring the president’s recent executive action on immigration to be unconstitutional.
Reid kept the Senate in all day Saturday and used the time to move dozens of judges and other Obama nominees toward confirmation before finally calling for a vote on the spending legislation, and Cruz’s point of order, late Saturday night.
Before adjourning Tuesday, lawmakers also passed an package of tax cuts that had expired in 2013. The $41 billion legislation provides the breaks for both individuals and businesses but only retroactively, through 2014. In other words, it expires at the end of the month.
