And even if a bill overcomes all these obstacles, it would risk a presidential veto.A matter of securityBut whatever the fate of these proposals, the political climate is changing faster than the weather.
The action, permitting a free vote on a series of options ranging from no ban to a full ban, guarantees passage by the House of Commons and will help the bill overcome expected opposition in the House of Lords.
Even if supporters of the bill overcome that obstacle and manage to get the legislation approved by the full Senate, where it enjoys broad support, the White House appears almost certain to have the last word.
Having passed the committee stage, the extradition bill overcame one big hurdle when it was rubber-stamped by the full Senate on May 23rd.
"The defenders of partial-birth abortion suffered another big setback today as our side, the backers of the bill, overcame one of the final remaining hurdles before enactment," said Douglas Johnson, a spokesman for the National Right to Life Committee.
Drafters of the bill overcame some resistance by pointing out that the bill, as written, was entirely optional — one reason there has been only a smattering of municipalities that have expressed interest in making use of the law since its March 21 effective date.
I had people tell me with great confidence that there are 60 votes in the Senate for cloture on the climate bill (to overcome the threat of filibuster) and 51 for the bill itself.
It is guaranteed that if the Shays-Meehan bill can overcome the malign intentions of its foes to kill it by stealth, and if it can get a straight up-or-down vote in the House, it will pass overwhelmingly.
Mr. Sarkozy offered no indication on Tuesday as to how he thought a new bill might overcome the objections of the council, which ruled that "the legislature did unconstitutional harm to the exercise of freedom of expression and communication" in approving the legislation.
The suit goes after the Senate's filibuster rule, which forces a bill to overcome a supermajority (of 60 votes) to end debate, while passage of a measure requires only 50 votes.
