Roll Call
BY TARGETED NEWS SERVICE
Sunday, December 09, 2012
12/09/12 at 5:39 AM
WASHINGTON - Here is how Oklahoma's members of the House of Representatives and Senate voted on key bills and amendments last week. A "Y" means the member voted for the measure; an "N" means the member voted against the measure; a "?" means the member did not vote.
HOUSE
Vote 1: Visas for technical workers: The House has passed the STEM Jobs Act (H.R. 6429), sponsored by Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas. The bill would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to make up to 55,000 visas available to immigrants who hold a U.S. doctorate in science, technology, engineering or mathematics and agree to work in their field in the U.S. for at least five years, while ending the diversity immigration visa program. The vote, on Nov. 30, was 245 yeas to 139 nays.
Vote 2: Energy efficiency standards: The House has passed the American Energy Manufacturing Technical Corrections Act (H.R. 6582), sponsored by Rep. Robert B. Aderholt, R-Ala. The bill would reform various Energy Department energy efficiency standards. The vote, on Dec. 4, was 398 yeas to 2 nays.
Vote 3: Internet governance: The House has approved a resolution (S.Con.Res. 50), sponsored by Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., expressing the sense of Congress that the Internet should remain stable, secure, and free from government control, and governed under the multistakeholder model that governs the Internet today. The vote, on Dec. 5, was unanimous with 397 yeas.
Vote 4: Terminology in legal code: The House has passed the 21st Century Language Act (S. 2367), sponsored by Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D. The bill would strike the word "lunatic" from the federal legal code. A supporter, Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, said: "The term 'lunatic' derives from the Latin word for 'moon.' Before the modern era, it was used to describe a person who suffers from mental disease because of the belief that lunar cycles had an impact on brain function. But as science and medicine have progressed, society has come to understand mental illness with more clarity." The vote, on Dec. 5, was 398 yeas to 1 nay.
DB: Dan Boren (D)
TC: Tom Cole (R)
JL: James Lankford (R)
FL: Frank Lucas (R)
JS: John Sullivan (R)
House vote
| Issue | DB | TC | JL | FL | JS |
| Vote 1: | ? | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Vote 2: | Y | Y | Y | Y | ? |
| Vote 3: | Y | Y | Y | Y | ? |
| Vote 4: | Y | Y | Y | Y | ? |
SENATE
Vote 1: Size of military workforce: The Senate has rejected an amendment sponsored by Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., to the National Defense Authorization Act (S. 3254). The amendment would have required the Defense Secretary to ensure that the military's civilian and contract services workforces are sufficiently sized, taking into account military strategy requirements and end-strength goals. The vote, on Nov. 30, was 41 yeas to 53 nays.
Vote 2: Sanctions against Iran: The Senate has approved an amendment sponsored by Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., to the National Defense Authorization Act (S. 3254). The amendment would expand sanctions against Iran, to cover the country's energy, port, shipping and shipbuilding sectors. The vote, on Nov. 30, was unanimous with 94 yeas.
Vote 3: Military survivor benefits: The Senate has rejected a motion to waive a budget point of order for an amendment sponsored by Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., to the National Defense Authorization Act (S. 3254). The amendment would have repealed a requirement for the reduction of annuity benefits to survivors of military retirees. The vote, on Nov. 30, was 58 yeas to 34 nays, with a three-fifths majority required to waive the point of order. Those voting yea supported keeping benefits at the current level; those voting nay opposed the amendment's increase in deficit spending.
Vote 4: U.N. disability rights treaty: The Senate has voted against ratification of the U.N.'s Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. A supporter, Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., said ratification would mean "the United States can join the convention as an expression of our leadership on disability rights without ceding any of our ability to decide for ourselves how best to address those issues in our laws." An opponent, Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., said ratifying the treaty would allow unelected bureaucracies at the U.N. to infringe on U.S. sovereignty. The vote, on Dec. 4, was 61 yeas to 38 nays, with a two-thirds majority required to ratify the treaty.
Vote 5: Assessing war in Syria: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., to the National Defense Authorization Act (S. 3254). The amendment would require the Secretary of Defense to provide congressional defense committees with a report on the potential use of limited military activities to deny Syrian President Bashar al-Assad the use of air power against opposition groups in Syria. The vote, on Dec. 4, was 92 yeas to 6 nays.
Vote 6: Military spending: The Senate has passed the National Defense Authorization Act (S. 3254), sponsored by Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich. The bill would authorize $631.4 billion of military spending programs in fiscal 2013, including the Energy Department's national security programs, and $88 billion for the war in Afghanistan and other overseas combat operations. The vote, on Dec. 4, was unanimous with 98 yeas.
Vote 7: Trade with Russia: The Senate has passed the Russia and Moldova Jackson-Vanik Repeal and Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act (H.R. 6156), sponsored by Rep. Dave Camp, R-Mich. The bill would extend normal trade relations for products produced by Russia and Moldova. The vote, on Dec. 6, was 92 yeas to 4 nays.
JI: Jim Inhofe (R)
TC: Tom Coburn (R)
Senate vote
| Issue | JI | TC |
| Vote 1: | N | N |
| Vote 2: | Y | Y |
| Vote 3: | N | N |
| Vote 4: | N | N |
| Vote 5: | Y | Y |
| Vote 6: | Y | Y |
| Vote 7: | Y | Y |
