GOP Couldn't Stop Spending Bill

Aided by Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman, the Senate tied up some loose ends Saturday when Lieberman cast the crucial 60th vote that helped Democrats put an end to a Republican filibuster on an immense end-of-year spending measure. The bill will boost budgets at the Education and State Departments, among others. The $1.1 trillion bill, which will be the subject of a final vote Sunday afternoon, finishes off the majority of the year's budget work, with only a Pentagon spending bill remaining. Republicans Thad Cochran of Mississippi, Richard Shelby of Alabama, and Susan Collins of Maine all crossed party lines to advance the bill, while Democrats Evan Bayh of Indiana, Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, and Claire McCaskill of Missouri voted "no."