U.S. Senate Dems Block Energy Bill In Impasse Over Flint
By MATTHEW DALY
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) - Senate Democrats have blocked a comprehensive energy bill in a dispute over a federal aid package for Flint, Michigan, and its lead-contaminated water.
Democrats wanted to add hundreds of millions of dollars in emergency assistance to Flint to fix and replace the city's pipes. Majority Republicans opposed the move.
The vote was 46-50, short of the number needed to move ahead on the bipartisan energy legislation.
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid says that "100,000 people in Flint, Michigan have been poisoned, and Republicans are doing nothing" to help them.
John Cornyn of Texas is the second-ranking Senate Republican. Cornyn says it's premature to write a "blank check" for Flint when state officials have not fully assessed their needs.
The energy bill is the first in nine years.
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