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Flurry of Amendments Slows Pension Passage
Thus far the Senate has rejected all of the amendments, but Democrats continued to lambaste the package, the benefits of which they claim are slanted toward wealthier Americans.
The tax bill contains key pension reform provisions of
interest to plan sponsors and participants.
Aligned with a crucial group of moderate Democrats,
Republicans had defeated more than two dozen amendments
over two days in a series of back-to-back votes.
Republican leaders still hope to land the tax cut, the largest since 1981, on President Bush’s desk by Memorial Day Monday. Democrats countered that the 1981 tax bill and various amendments were under discussion for a much longer period, and complained that Republican leaders were employing special Senate budget rules to rush the package through with limited debate.
Despite opposition efforts, the Senate is expected to pass the bill, though probably not until tomorrow or Thursday – at which time members of the House and Senate will have to sit down and work out a compromise between the two plans.