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Tennessee Senators aided by rare Washington bipartisanship

senate.gov

WASHINGTON DC, Tenn. (OSBORNE)  --  Tennessee’s Senators scored a pair of legislative victories this week in Washington DC, thanks to bipartisanship that’s unusual in the nation’s deeply divided capital.

Senator Lamar Alexander’s opioid crisis response legislation is now headed to the full Senate for a final vote. On Tuesday the Senate Health Committee Alexander chairs voted unanimously to move the legislation forward.

“All of this can now move to the Senate floor and be combine with what the House will do and hopefully send it to the president soon. The epidemic of opioids needs a prompt, bipartisan, and effective response and we gave it that today in the Senate Health Committee.”

Alexander notes 38 senators from both parties contributed proposals to the crisis response plan.

Tennessee Senator Bob Corker also enjoyed a rare legislative victory this week. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee Corker chairs advanced the nomination of Mike Pompeo to be the next Secretary of State.

With one Republican Senator away attending the funeral of a friend, Corker didn’t have the votes he needed to get Pompeo confirmed. Postponing the vote would have embarrassed Corker, nominee Pompeo, and President Donald Trump.

But in an unusual show of Senate collegiality, Democrat Chris Coons agreed to vote yes in place of the missing GOP Senator. Corker praised his committee members.

“We have continued to conduct our business in a very bi-partisan way. Always, always, beginning with Republicans and Democrats working together to come to a good end.”

Both senators will have to push hard to see their committee victories pay off in final votes on the Senate floor.