House Democrats came so close to a veto-proof margin for their proposal to give the unemployed an extra three months of benefits.Taking another shot on the same measure, the goal for Thursday was to pass it by just a majority, not the two-thirds it would take to overcome a presidential veto. The idea is to speed the bill to the White House.
The legislation would extend the average $300-a-week benefit check by 13 weeks for all unemployed people who exhaust their regular 26 weeks of benefits. Jobseekers in high unemployment states — Alaska, California, Michigan and Rhode Island, for example — could get an extra 13 weeks on top of that.
House Democratic leaders on Wednesday brought up the bill under a procedure that required a two-thirds vote for approval. The final tally, 279-144, was three votes shy of the two-thirds margin.
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