Thousands of federal workers furloughed because of Senate filibuster

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In the Senate, where the GOP holds a 41-59 majority on healthcare, the one-man filibuster of Sen. Jim Bunning, a Kentucky Republican, is putting a couple of thousand federal transportation workers out of work this week.

Bunning is blocking an extension of unemployment benefits and health insurance payments for hundreds of thousands of out-of-work Americans over concerns about the bill’s impact on the federal budget. The programs expired Sunday night.

Democratic and Republican leaders had agreed to pass a one-month extension through a process known as unanimous consent, meaning no formal vote was required. The House has passed a bill, and the president was ready to sign it. But Bunning’s single objection blocked it in the Senate.

The bill also included funding for federal transportation programs, with reimbursements to the states totaling about $190 million a day. The Department of Transportation has announced 2,000 furloughs of workers as a result of the bill’s blockage -- increasing pressure on the Senate to move the legislation.

For more details, see The Swamp.

-- Mark Silva