Getting your player ready...
WASHINGTON — As Congress raced to leave Washington for its Easter recess, a stubborn Republican senator blocked a stopgap bill to extend jobless benefits, saying its $9 billion cost should not be added to the national debt.
As a result, some people who have been out of work for more than six months will at least temporarily lose benefits. Generous health insurance subsidies for the jobless will also expire.
At the center of the battle is Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., who’s insisting that the measure be “paid for” so as not to add to the nation’s $12.7 trillion debt.
