WASHINGTON — The Senate overwhelmingly approved provisions from President Barack Obama’s jobs plan that found rare bipartisan appeal, including a proposal to give companies tax credits for hiring unemployed veterans.
The vets package proved too irresistible for Republicans to block, as they have most other flanks of Obama’s $447 billion jobs package.
The 94-1 vote on the eve of Veterans Day comes at a time when the jobless rate among Iraq and Afghanistan vets is in the double digits, higher than the 9 percent national unemployment rate.
Obama’s proposal was bolstered by attaching a popular House-passed bill that would provide job training for vets.
“It’s the right thing to do,” said Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., who co-sponsored the measure.
The lone dissenting vote came from Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C. He said politicians were “pandering” for veterans’ votes by approving tax credits that wouldn’t really persuade companies to hire vets.
Leaders tacked the veterans legislation to another popular provision from Obama’s package — the repeal of a forthcoming business tax on companies that contract with the government.
The overall package sailed through the Senate on Thursday 95-0. Approval now sends the proposals to the GOP- led House, which is expected to give speedy approval, possibly next week.
Thursday’s votes offer a brief reprieve in the bipartisan war over Obama’s jobs package, which has run into strong resistance from the GOP in Congress.
Democrats smoothed the offer by dropping the millionaire’s tax to pay for the package. Instead, the nearly $2 billion cost will be covered by extending a Veterans Affairs loan fee, as proposed in the House bill.
The business provision would repeal a 3 percent withholding tax on companies that contract with the government that was first approved during the George W. Bush administration but had been postponed until 2013.
Republicans tried amending the bill with a giant package they said would create jobs by cutting income-tax rates, repealing Obama’s health care overhaul and blocking or annulling many labor, energy and environmental regulations. It was rejected by a near-party-line 56-40 tally.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
