Not one Republican voted for the DISCLOSE Act earlier this evening so Senate Democrats, led by Rhode Island’s own Sheldon Whitehouse, plan to work the Senate floor well into the night in hopes of getting the bill that would force SuperPACs and other secret political donors to stand behind the advertisements they fund.
“I’m disappointed that so many of my Republican colleagues, many of whom have clearly supported disclosure in the past, chose today to defend secret spending by special interests rather than stand up for the voices of the middle class,” Whitehouse said in a statement. “However, as I have said before, we can’t let the special interests off the hook after just one round, and I look forward to joining my Democratic colleagues who want to continue debating this issue well into the night. In the meantime, I encourage all Americans to make their voices heard in this debate, and I hope my Republican colleagues will join us to put an end to secret election spending.”
Earlier today, we quoted Whitehouse – who predicted this would happen – as calling it the midnight vigil.
You can watch the action from the Senate floor live here.
Or follow the fun on Twitter with the hashtag #DiscloseVote or in this widget: