AFL-CIO
Congressional Voting Record (COPE)
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Gordon
Smith |
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| View the 2004 voting record of Gordon Smith on bills that represent a wide range of the issues most important to working people and their families. |
2004 U.S. Senate
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Right Votes—33%
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Right—4
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Wrong—8 |
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Lifetime Right—20%
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TRANSPORTATION |
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| S. 1072—The $318 billion highway and transportation bill would create about 5 million jobs over the next six years in new highway and transit construction projects. Although a bipartisan group of state government officials argued that at least $318 billion was needed to meet the country’s transportation needs, the Bush administration threatened to veto the bill and said it would not approve spending more than $256 billion. The legislation also contained Davis–Bacon prevailing wage protections, long opposed by President George W. Bush. The bill passed Feb. 12, 2004, 76–21. Y=R; N=W (R: 34–17; D: 41–4; I: 1–0) | Right Vote |
UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE |
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| S. 1805—In December 2003, the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation (TEUC) program expired. The TEUC provided generally 13 weeks of federal unemployment benefits for workers who had exhausted their state benefits without finding new employment. By early 2004, the economy had lost more than 2.7 million private-sector jobs since Bush took office, more than 2 million jobless workers had been out of work for 27 or more weeks and about 90,00 workers a week were exhausting their state unemployment benefits.. An amendment to S. 1805 would have extended the TEUC program for six months. Because of Senate procedural rules, the amendment required 60 votes to pass. It failed Feb. 26, 2004, 58–39. Y=R; N=W (R: 12–38; D: 45–1; I: 1–0) | Right Vote |
EXPORTING AMERICAN JOBS |
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| S. 1637—In a Feb. 9 report, President Bush’s Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) released a report that said exporting American jobs was a good thing. At that time, the United States had lost some 2.7 million private-sector jobs since Bush took office in 2001; 40 percent of the nation’s Fortune 500 companies were using some sort of overseas outsourcing; and some reports predicted as many as 3.3 million jobs would be shipped offshore in the next 15 years. Bush’s chairman of the CEA endorsed outsourcing “as just a new way to do international trade.” An amendment to S. 1637 prohibited the overseas outsourcing of government contracts. Contracts with signatories to a World Trade Organization procurement agreement, as well as contracts that involve national security, were exempted. The amendment passed March 4, 2004, 70–26. Y=R; N=W (R: 25–26; D: 44–0; I: 1–0) | Right Vote |
BUDGET |
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| S. Con. Res. 95—President Bush presented a budget that permanently locked in multitrillion-dollar tax breaks that mostly benefit the nation’s wealthiest. To finance these taxes cuts for millionaires and billionaires, the Republican budget resolution—which mirrored Bush’s proposal—inflated the record-high $477 billion U.S. deficit and by $113 billion shortchanged or cut funds for the domestic programs working families need most—from job creation to health care, transportation and education. The Senate passed the annual budget resolution, which sets setting spending and revenue guidelines for the fiscal year, on March 12, 2004, 51–45. Y=W; N=R (R: 50–1; D: 1–43; I: 0–1) | Wrong Vote |
ASBESTOS |
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| S. 2290—Decades of uncontrolled use of asbestos in many industries—and a deliberate cover-up of its health effects on workers—have caused a health crisis of asbestos-related diseases. Hundreds of thousands of workers and their family members have suffered and died of asbestos-related cancers and lung diseases. S. 2290 was the result of a backroom deal, between insurers and defendant companies in asbestos-related lawsuits, that was brokered by the Republican leadership. It was grossly inadequate and failed to provide fair compensation for victims of asbestos disease or any certainty that claims will be paid. It also would leave the asbestos trust fund more than $40 billion short of the amount needed to pay fair claims. The Senate defeated a motion to limit debate on an asbestos litigation reform bill that would have blocked moves to improve the bill. The motion, which required 60 votes, failed on April 22, 2004. 50–47: Y=W; N=R (R: 49–0; D: 1–46; I: 0–1) | Wrong Vote |
OVERTIME |
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| S. 1637—In April 2004, the Bush administration issued final overtime eligibility regulations that threatened the overtime rights of 6 million workers. The Senate passed an amendment to S. 1637 guaranteeing workers’ overtime rights by repealing any portion of the new rules that weakened overtime protection for workers. The amendment, offered by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), passed May 4, 2004, 52–47. Y=R; N=W (R: 5–46; D: 46–1; I: 1–0) | Wrong Vote |
EXPORTING JOBS |
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| S. 1637—In attempt to slow the growing export of U.S jobs overseas by U.S. corporations, an amendment to S. 1637 was offered that would have required U.S. multinational companies to pay federal taxes on income from foreign factories when goods are shipped back into the United States. Employers also would be required to notify employees and the Labor Department when jobs will be moved offshore, including the number of jobs affected, the destination of those jobs and the reason for the relocation. A motion to table or kill the amendment passed May 5, 2004, 60–39. Y=W; N=R (R: 51–0; D: 8–39; I: 1–0) | Wrong Vote |
UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE |
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| S. 1637—The Bush administration and congressional Republican leaders allowed the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation (TEUC) program to expire in December 2003 and blocked several attempts to revive it. TEUC provided generally 13 weeks of federal unemployment benefits for workers who had exhausted their state benefits. In the first four months of 2004, nearly 2 million workers who had exhausted their state benefits without finding new jobs did not receive any additional aid because the Bush administration refused to back reviving the TEUC. An amendment to S. 1637 that would have reauthorized the TEUC for six months failed to get the 60 votes required under Senate procedural rules. The measure failed May 11, 2004, 59–40. Y=R; N=W (R: 12–39; D: 46–1; I: 1–0) | Right Vote |
EDUCATION |
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| S. 1248—The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) provides funding to states for special education programs. But the Bush administration’s proposed less than the full funding needed to meet the program’s obligations until 2028. An amendment to the IDEA reauthorization bill would have funded IDEA at an additional $2.2 billion per year for eight years until full funding was reached. The bipartisan amendment, offered by Sens. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) and Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) required 60 votes rather than a simple majority vote because of Senate budget rules. The amendment failed May 12, 2004, 56–41. Y=R; N=W (R: 10–40; D: 45–1; I: 1–0) | Wrong Vote |
BUY AMERICA |
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| S. 2400—The fiscal year 2004 Defense reauthorization bill contained a provision that allowed the Secretary of Defense to waive Buy American laws, which require at least 50 percent of all defense systems, components and weapons be manufactured in the United States. The Bush administration supported the waiver provisions. To block an amendment that would have stripped those anti-Buy American provisions from S. 2400, Republican leaders offered an amendment allowing the Secretary of Defense to waive Buy American requirements relating to 21 countries that have a memorandum of understanding with the United States. The amendment passed June 22, 2004, 54–46. Y=W; N=R (R: 48–3; D: 5–43; I: 1–0) | Wrong Vote |
IMMIGRATION |
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| S. 2062—The Agricultural Job Opportunity, Benefits and Security Act (Ag Jobs) bill was a bipartisan immigration reform proposal that would provide an avenue for 500,000 undocumented farm workers to qualify for permanent residency status through an earned legalization program. The Ag Jobs agreement was the product of years of negotiation between the United Farm Workers of America (UFW) and growers. It was opposed by Senate Republican leaders and the Bush administration. The bill’s supporters intended to offer it as an amendment to the Class Action Fairness Act (S. 2062). To block the amendment, Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) tried to invoke cloture—or shut off all debate—on S. 2062 before the amendment could be offered. The cloture motion, which requires 60 votes, failed 44–43 July 8. Frist then pulled S. 2062 from the floor rather than allow a vote on the Ag Jobs amendment. Y=W; N=R (R: 42–3; D: 2–39; I: 0–1) | Wrong Vote |
CONTRACTING OUT |
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| H.R. 4567—The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), as part of the Bush administration’s effort to privatize the federal workforce, developed plans to contract out the work performed by almost 1,500 immigration information officers, contact representatives and investigative assistants in offices across the nation. The Senate passed an amendment that would prohibit the DHS’s Citizenship and Immigration Services from contracting out work. The amendment passed Sept. 8, 2004, 49–47. Y=R; N=W (R: 5–46; D: 43–1; I: 1–0) | Wrong Vote |
EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE |
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| S. 1925—The Employee Free Choice Act would ensure when a majority of employees in a workplace decides to form a union, employees can do so without the debilitating obstacles employers now use to block their workers’ free choice. The Employee Free Choice Act allows workers to freely choose whether to form unions by signing cards authorizing union representation. It also provides mediation and arbitration for first-contract disputes and establishes stronger penalties for violations of employee rights when workers seek to form a union and during first-contract negotiations. The bill never came to a vote but won 38 co-sponsors and is included in the Voting Record but not included in the year-end or lifetime percentages. | Did Not Co-Sponsor |
| Voting record compiled and provided by the AFL-CIO. |