Roland Burris

[Congressional biography]

Born: August 3, 1937 in Centralia, IL

Education:

Career:

Elected Office:

Key Senate Vote Data for Roland Burris in 2010

Date	Subject	Result	Conserv. Position	Burris Voted
2010-01-21	TARP Elimination [HJRES45]	Rejected (53-45)
The Senate defeated an amendment eliminating the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) and lowering the debt ceiling by the amount of TARP funds repaid. ACU opposed TARP from the beginning and supported this amendment. Although a majority of the Senate voted to eliminate TARP, under Senate procedures 60 votes were required.
2010-01-26	Debt Limit Increase / Spending Cuts [HJRES45]	Rejected (33-61)
The Senate defeated an amendment to the Debt Ceiling bill which would have cut federal spending by a total of $120 billion. Amendment opponents insisted on dividing the amendment into three separate votes. This vote was to eliminate $22 billion in excessive overhead and duplicative programs.
2010-02-09	Becker Nomination	Rejected (52-33)
The Senate voted against halting debate on the nomination of Craig Becker to be a member of the National Labor Relations Board. ACU opposed the nomination of Becker to the NLRB because his long record as a union organizer indicated his lack of objectivity for the position. In this case, although a majority of the Senate voted to stop debate and move to confirmation, under Senate rules 60 votes were required.
2010-03-16	Blocking Earmark Moratorium [HR1586]	Agreed To (68-29)
The Senate killed an amendment that would have imposed a one year moratorium on congressional earmarked spending provisions.
2010-03-16	D.C. School Choice [HR1586]	Rejected (42-55)
The Senate rejected an amendment that would have prevented the elimination of tuition vouchers in the District of Columbia for low-income students that was canceled by the Obama Administration.
2010-03-24	Blocking Health Care Bill Repeal [HR4872]	Agreed To (58-39)
The Senate voted to kill an amendment that would have repealed the so-called Obamacare Health Care overhaul enacted by Congress at the end of 2009.
2010-03-25	Health Care and Immigration Status [HR4872]	Agreed To (55-43)
Motion to table (kill) an amendment that would have limited federal health care programs to U.S. citizens or legal alien residents. ACU supported this effort to require documentation for eligibility.
2010-03-25	Health Care Reconciliation [HR4872]	Passed (56-43)
After passing the Obama Administration's health care "reform" bill in late 2009 on a party-line vote, Congress used the reconciliation process to get a bill through the Senate making some "fixes" to the Health Care Act, including tax increases and federal funding of abortion. The bill also included a government takeover of the student loan program. ACU opposes the procedure and the substance of this effort.
2010-05-06	Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac [S3217]	Rejected (35-59)
During consideration of the Financial Regulatory Overhaul bill, an effort was made to include government-sponsored financial institutions, such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the regulations, particularly with regard to limiting their size.
2010-05-11	Federal Reserve Audit [S3217]	Rejected (37-62)
The Senate defeated an effort to provide for an audit of the Federal Reserve Bank by the Government Accounting Office.
2010-05-12	FHA Mortgage Rate Revisions / Down Payment Requirement [S3217]	Rejected (42-57)
An amendment designed to reduce taxpayer exposure for risky home mortgages by increasing the minimum down payment requirement from 3.5 percent to 5 percent and placing other limits on taxpayer-guaranteed mortgages. ACU thinks loose lending practices by government agencies fueled the meltdown in the housing market, and so supported this tightening.
2010-05-20	Financial Regulatory Overhaul [S3217]	Agreed To (60-40)
The Senate agreed to stop debate and vote on a massive rewrite of the nation's financial services industry regulations. ACU strongly opposed this rewrite, judging that it will not protect consumers, and will in fact further destabilize the economy. Under Senate rules, 60 votes are required to limit debate.
2010-05-27	Blocking Recissions and Federal Salary Freeze [HR4899]	Agreed To (53-45)
The Senate killed an amendment that would offset the cost of a supplemental spending bill by freezing salaries of federal civilian employees and rescinding 5 percent of the budget authority for programs other than those in the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.
2010-05-27	U.S. Mexico Border Fence [HR4899]	Rejected (45-52)
The Senate failed to bring up an amendment that would require completion of a 700-mile southern border fence. Under Senate rules, a two-thirds majority was needed to bring up the amendment.
2010-06-10	Disapproving EPA Power Grab [SJRES26]	Rejected (47-53)
The Environmental Protection Agency has signaled its intent to regulate CO2, despite the absence of any congressional mandate to do so. ACU opposes this power grab by EPA, and supported the effort.
2010-07-21	Estate Tax Repeal [HR4213]	Rejected (39-59)
The Senate defeated an effort to bring up a permanent repeal of the death tax.
2010-07-21	Arizona Immigration Law [HR4213]	Rejected (43-55)
The Senate defeated an effort to bring up an amendment de-funding federal efforts to invalidate Arizona's state immigration law.
2010-08-05	Kagan Nomination	Confirmed (63-37)
The Senate voted to confirm the nomination of Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court. ACU opposed this nomination, considering Kagan's record as a political activist.
2010-09-23	Union Election Reform [SJRES30]	Rejected (43-56)
Congress has declined to pass the so-called "card check" legislation, which would make it easier for labor unions to organize workers. Nevertheless, the National Mediation Board has promulgated rules that would accomplish the same result. On September 23, 2010, the Senate rejected a motion to proceed to consider a resolution of disapproval of the NMB action.
2010-09-23	Campaign Finance Disclosure [S3628]	Rejected (59-39)
In the wake of the Supreme Court's decision upholding free speech rights for groups of private individuals, corporate entities, and labor unions in political campaign advertising, efforts were made in both houses of Congress to overturn it. The House did pass such legislation, but the Senate refused to take up a bill imposing federal requirements on political advertising. Although a majority of the Senate did vote for it, under Senate rules 60 votes were required.
2010-09-29	Spending Reductions [HR3081]	Rejected (48-51)
The Senate defeated an amendment that would have cut federal spending by 5 percent (except for defense, veterans' and homeland security) after spending on these programs had increased by 20-30% since 2008.

Represents a "Yes" vote.   Represents a "No" vote.   Indicates that this member voted against the conservative position on a particular vote. "No vote" means that this member did not cast a vote (or voted 'Present' instead of Yes or No).