Clinton pushes for jobless aid extension

Hillary Clinton on Tuesday urged Congress to quickly pass an extension of federal jobless aid.

The former New York senator took to Twitter to reflect on her part in helping to extend a similar program a decade ago.

10 years ago I was proud to begin working on bipartisan efforts to save unemployment insurance. Let’s do it again quickly in this new year.

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) December 31, 2013

{mosads}Clinton has sporadically weighed in on the news of the day since leaving the State Department. During the government shutdown in October, she criticized lawmakers who govern by ideology for pushing the government from crisis to crisis.

Jobless benefits for nearly 1.3 million people expired Saturday after Congress left the extensions of long-term unemployment aid out of a budget agreement reached earlier this month.

The federal benefits, started in 2008, allowed states to extend the normal amount of time unemployed individuals are allowed to collect benefits.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) had said taking up the extension would be his first priority when the Senate returns next week. During an interview this week, he predicted the first vote on an extension next Monday.

The Senate is expected to take up a bill sponsored by Sens. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.) that would temporarily extend the benefits for three months without offsetting the cost.