Grassley weighing decision on unemployment extension

Sen. Chuck Grassley's support for a measure extending unemployment benefits will depend on whether majority Democrats agree to pay the $34 billion bill for helping out-of-work Americans or add it to the deficit.

A 60-40 vote on cloture July 20 signaled Democrats have the votes to extend unemployment compensation for millions of Americans whose 99 weeks of benefits are running out. He opposed cutting off debate. Iowa Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin voted for cloture and will vote for the extension when it comes up, probably later today.

In Iowa, a spokeswoman for Workforce Development said 15,800 workers have seen their benefits expire. That number is growing by as many as 2,000 Iowans a week.

That didn't have to happen, Grassley said. Republicans offered paid-for extensions four times in June, “so you could have your cake and eat it too -- you could have no lapse in unemployment compensation and we wouldn't have added to the deficit.”

Republicans felt more urgency than Democrats to extend benefit without a lapse, but oppose increasing the deficit to do that, Grassley said.

“We hear from the grass roots of Iowa concern about deficit,” the Iowa Republican said. “That's why we have fought not only to not have a lapse in unemployment compensation, but to pay for it. It's really the majority party's determination to deficit-spend that really caused the lapse.”

He called President Obama “intellectually dishonest” to blame Republicans for delaying the extension.

Grassley doubts there will be a lengthy debate.

“I would say that since the decision has been made the votes are there, then the sooner the help gets out the better,” he said.

“I know I'm not going to use my one hour to speak,” he said. “Let me tell you, as a practical matter, nobody wants to stay around here until 10 o'clock tonight.”

Kerry Koonce, a spokesperson for Workforce Development, said retroactive lump sum payments to Iowa workers whose benefits ended June 2 will pump $27 million into the state's economy. The payments could arrive late next week.

Iowa law provides 26 weeks of unemployment benefits, and there are three other tiers available, with a maximum 73 weeks of unemployment benefits possible.

People who have exhausted their 73 weeks are not affected by the extension.