Robert Torricelli of New Jersey - who voted for a nearly identical proposal two years ago as a member of the House - announced yesterday his intention to vote against the balanced budget amendment in the Senate, denying the GOP its top political goal for the 105th Congress.
Although Senate debate on the proposal will continue until an expected floor vote on Tuesday, the outcome appears locked in place: The amendment has 66 supporters, one short of the necessary two-thirds majority needed for adoption. With Torricelli's announcement, 34 senators - all Democrats - have voiced opposition to the measure.
"I have struggled with this decision more than any that I have ever made in my life," the first-term senator declared at a crowded news conference. He said he reached his conclusion based on concerns the amendment as drafted could threaten national defense, limit infrastructure investment and prolong future economic downturns because it would not allow the government enough flexibility for going into debt.
WASHINGTON - Apparently ending the Republican-led drive for a constitutional amendment mandating a balanced federal budget, an undecided Democratic senator skewered the GOP's top legislative priority by renouncing his previous support for the measure.
Robert Torricelli of New Jersey - who voted for a nearly identical proposal two years ago as a member of the House - announced yesterday his intention to vote against the balanced budget amendment in the Senate, denying the GOP its top political goal for the 105th Congress.
Although Senate debate on the proposal will continue until an expected floor vote on Tuesday, the outcome appears locked in place: The amendment has 66 supporters, one short of the necessary two-thirds majority needed for adoption. With Torricelli's announcement, 34 senators - all Democrats - have voiced opposition to the measure.
"I have struggled with this decision more than any that I have ever made in my life," the first-term senator declared at a crowded news conference. He said he reached his conclusion based on concerns the amendment as drafted could threaten national defense, limit infrastructure investment and prolong future economic downturns because it would not allow the government enough flexibility for going into debt.
Acknowledging that he had campaigned as a supporter of a balanced budget amendment to win his Senate seat, Torricelli said, "I believe in the end of the day ... I was elected to exercise my best judgment for the country and that's what I did."
If the expected votes hold and the measure fails in the Senate, House leaders say they have no intention of forcing a vote on the matter in their chamber.
"I'm disappointed, terribly disappointed," an emotional Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) said after Torricelli's announcement. Hatch, who has led the floor fight for the amendment, added: "It's been a tough battle and it's not over yet. I don't want to mislead you, it's uphill."
nd non-governmental rights advocates believe there should be a permanent judicial body to investigate and prosecute such crimes worldwide.
For the second time in less than three months, Greenspan also raised the prospect that the federal government soon may have to raise interest rates in a pre-emptive strike to keep wage increases and the economy's growth-rate in check - possibly even before it has any really solid evidence that inflation may be intensifying.
Greenspan's remarks, delivered during testimony before the Senate Banking Committee as part of his semiannual report to Congress, rocked the financial markets. The Dow Jones Industrials Average plunged 120 points, but later recovered somewhat to close at 6983.18, down 55.03 from Tuesday.
The chairman's warning came four weeks before a March 25 meeting of the Fed's policy-making Federal Open Market Committee, which is expected to consider once again whether to raise interest rates in an effort to prevent a revival of inflationary pressures.
The proposed changes would require larger type, more white space, a standardized format and simpler language. The transformation would resemble the recent remaking of all U.S. food labels.
These changes were among several major consumer-oriented improvements sought by outgoing FDA Commissioner David Kessler.