Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
You did it! You shamed Republicans into voting for the 9/11 first responders bill. Deal reached on aid package for 9/11 responders:
After a last-minute compromise, the Senate passed legislation Wednesday to provide up to $4.2 billion in new aid to survivors of the September 2001 terrorism attack on the World Trade Center and responders who became ill working in its ruins.
A House vote was expected on the bill within hours as lawmakers raced to wrap up their work for the year.
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The 9/11 legislation provides money for monitoring and treating illnesses related to Ground Zero and reopens a victims' compensation fund for another five years to cover wage and other economic losses of sickened workers and nearby residents. Schumer and Gillibrand had sought $6.2 billion and keeping the compensation fund open for 10 years.
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The compromise was reached after Democrats scheduled a showdown test vote for Wednesday afternoon and Republicans countered by threatening to run a 30-hour clock before allowing final Senate and House votes on the bill.
The bill gained momentum with help from cable TV personalities. Among the biggest champions of the package were Fox News anchor Shepard Smith and comedian and activist Jon Stewart, who championed the bill and lashed its GOP foes on his Comedy Central TV program "The Daily Show."
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