Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., announced on June 30 that the Senate will remain in session following the July 4 holiday in order to continue negotiations on deficit reduction and other legislation impacting the economy. The Senate was originally scheduled to have the entire week of July 4 off but Reid reconsidered after President Obama chastised lawmakers in a June 29 speech (TAXDAY, 2011/06/30, W.1) for taking time off during a time of severe economic stress.
“We will be in session next week, with our first vote on July 5th,” said Reid from the Senate floor. “There is still so much to do to put Americans back to work, cut our deficit, and get our economy back on track.”
Obama reiterated in his speech that the date for a default on U.S. debt is August 2, and that federal lawmakers might need to cut short their congressional recess periods if an agreement is not reached soon. Following Reid’s announcement, Senate Democrats and Republicans continued to spar over the issue of raising taxes as a means to help reduce the deficit.
By Jeff Carlson, CCH News Staff
