Recent Senate Votes
Confirmation of Robert S. Mueller III to be Director of the FBI – Vote Confirmed (100-0)
The Senate agreed to extend the term of Federal Bureau of Investigation director Robert S. Mueller III through September 4, 2013. The FBI director is limited to one 10-year term and Muellers term began in August 2001. The president signed legislation earlier in the week to allow Mueller to serve an additional two years.
Budget Control Act of 2011 – Vote Agreed to (74-26)
The Senate gave final approval to this bill to raise the debt limit by at least $2.1 trillion and cut spending by as much as $2.4 trillion over the next ten years. President Obama signed the bill into law a short time later.
Recent House Votes
North American-Made Energy Security Act – Vote Passed (279-147, 1 Present, 5 Not Voting)
This House bill would require the White House to decide by November 1 whether to allow construction of a 1,700 mile oil pipeline running from Canada to U.S. refineries in the Midwest and Gulf Coast. The application to build the pipeline was made nearly three years ago. The White House said the State Department is committed to completing its review by the end of the year and called the bill “unnecessary.”
Budget Control Act of 2011 – Vote Passed (269-161, 3 Not Voting)
The House passed this bill that raises the debt limit, caps discretionary spending for ten years, establishes a bipartisan committee to identify additional spending cuts, and requires a vote on a balanced budget amendment to the constitution. The Senate gave final approval to the bill the next day, clearing it for the president.
