Reid blocks GOP attempt to separate CR from Syria vote

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) blocked Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) from separating the stopgap spending measure from authorization for training Syrian forces.

Corker, who serves as ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said combining the two issues was “a poor way to run the Senate.” He said he’d prefer two votes as the House did Wednesday.

{mosads}Corker supports President Obama’s title X authorization to train and equip moderate Syrian rebels to help combat the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), but he does not support the continued spending resolution (CR) that spends $1 trillion to keep the government operating through Dec. 11 in order to avert a government shutdown.

“We ought to vote on each of those,” Corker said before asking for unanimous consent to hold two separate votes on Thursday.

Reid objected, saying if lawmakers wish to prevent a government shutdown, the Senate has to pass the House’s bill.

“We should pass the House-passed CR,” Reid said. “We cannot have another government shutdown.”

The Senate is expected to pass the House CR on Thursday before adjourning for midterm campaigning ahead of the election.