Amid fresh warnings, Homeland Security bill stalls in Senate

Negotiations to bring the fiscal 2005 Homeland Security spending bill to the Senate floor appear to have stalled -- even as Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge warned Thursday that al-Qaida may be attempting to influence the U.S. elections through a massive attack on this country.

With Ridge's warning Thursday, and with only one fiscal 2005 spending bill brought to the Senate floor for a vote so far -- the $416 billion Defense measure -- Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, offered to bring the Homeland Security bill up for a final vote by 5 P.M. Monday, with amendments to increase spending on the bill requiring offsets elsewhere in the measure.

But Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., objected, arguing that was not enough time for senators to read the bill and offer amendments, although he expressed a willingness to discuss the issue further so that the bill could be completed by early next week.

Daschle and Minority Whip Harry Reid, D-Nev., criticized the offer as an attempt to debate the bill under more structured House rules.

Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., suggested bringing up the Homeland Security bill first thing Tuesday, under the same parameters which allowed the Defense bill to pass the Senate in four hours prior to the July Fourth recess. Daschle agreed, arguing the Defense debate did not contain similar conditions advocated by Stevens.

But Reid noted that next week would be taken up with consideration of a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriages. "How do the people of South Dakota feel about going to an amendment dealing with gay marriage or going to do an appropriation bill dealing with homeland security?" Reid asked Daschle, who faces a tough re-election challenge from former Rep. John Thune, R-S.D.

Despite the swift consideration of the Defense spending bill, some aides are pessimistic that the same treatment would be afforded the Homeland Security measure -- and that it was more likely to be wrapped into a fiscal 2005 omnibus spending package.

With no budget resolution in place, spending increases are not subject to 60-vote points of order on individual bills, but rather an overall cap of $814 billion set by last year's budget.

"I'd be very surprised if Homeland came up this month. Without a budget resolution, it'd be a very heavy lift for us to do any individual [appropriations] bills," a Senate Republican aide said.

Senate Appropriations ranking member Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., also blasted GOP leadership for not scheduling floor time for the Homeland Security bill.

"But what is our response to the secretary's warnings in this Senate? We give whistles to staff in the Capitol, and hope for the best. We sit back and wait, wait, wait on an appropriation bill that would improve homeland security. Instead of acting, we delay," Byrd said on the floor.