Senate Democrats Filibuster Human Trafficking Bill - East Idaho News
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Senate Democrats Filibuster Human Trafficking Bill

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Getty USCapitol?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1426617213706iStock/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) — A human trafficking bill once considered to be a legislative slam dunk is now ensnared in a political fight that looks unlikely to be resolved any time soon.

On Tuesday morning, Senate Democrats filibustered a bill to aid victims of human trafficking due to abortion restrictions included in the measure.

The Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015, which establishes a fund for victims of human trafficking, has garnered bipartisan support. But Senate Democrats objected to moving forward with the bill due to a provision that would subject it to the Hyde amendment, which prohibits the use of taxpayer funds on abortions.

The Senate failed to move forward on the bill with a vote of 55-43 Tuesday morning. Sixty votes were needed to advance the measure. 

Four Democrats voted for cloture — Sens. Bob Casey, D-Pa., Joe Donnelly, D-Ind., Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., and Joe Manchin, D-W.V. Two Republicans and potential presidential contenders were not present for the vote — Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell also voted against the bill in a procedural move that allows him to bring it up for a vote in the future.

Republicans have criticized Democrats for standing in the way of passing legislation that would help women and children who have been subjected to trafficking.

“Democrats filibustering help for terrified children and abused women would represent a new low,” McConnell, R-Ky., said ahead of the vote.

Over the weekend, McConnell threatened to delay a vote to confirm Loretta Lynch as the next attorney general until the Senate moves forward on the trafficking bill. The move angered Senate Democrats who are insisting a vote be held this week, four months after Lynch was nominated to the top post at the Department of Justice.

“It’s now been 129 days since her nomination was announced,” Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said at a news conference. “What’s the excuse that the hard right members of the Republican party have for not wanting to vote on her? Well first it was the president’s executive action. Now it’s the trafficking bill. What do those two things have in common? They have nothing to do, absolutely nothing to do with Loretta Lynch. That’s about the only thing they have in common.”

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton weighed in on the fight Monday, tweeting that Republicans are leading a “congressional trifecta against women.”

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