On the Senate floor - those in favour, and those against...

02 October 2008

Washington: The US Senate cleared the Indo-US 123 Agreement on civil nuclear cooperation with a 86-13 vote in favour. This vote not just clears trade in nuclear fuel and technologies between the two countries, but more importantly presages deeper political, economic, and perhaps, military ties between the two nations. The vote in the Senate, and earlier in the House of Representatives, overturns a  ban lasting 34 years.

President Bush had earlier urged the Senate to pass the bill through a statement released before the vote. The bill "represents a major milestone in the transformation of our nation's important relationship with India," the statement said.

Faced with a historic task of clearing two highly controversial Bills in a single sitting, the Senate was in a determined mood to do what it thought was right. It cleared both the Indo-US nuclear civil nuclear cooperation Bill, as well as the $700 billion economic bailout package with resounding majorities leaving no room for doubt as to what their sentiments on these issues were.

For the record, the vote in favour of the Indo-US nuclear deal garnered 86 votes while the votes against numbered a mere 13. This is a phenomenal show of support, considering that the Senate is a 100 member House. Presumably, Senator Edward Kennedy may have been the lone absentee on account of ill health.

Also present on the occasion were presidential candidates, Senators John McCain and Barack Obama, both of whom voted in favour.

As for the debate itself, the highly respected Sen. Chris Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, said the deal would not only "set the stage for a stronger US-India relationship," but also would promote stability in India's troubled neighborhood.