Senate Republicans say yes to "Dr. No"

By Donna Smith

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An effort to break a Republican hold on U.S. election-year legislation that would aid medical research, help crack down on child pornography and advance other popular measures failed in the Senate on Monday.

In a mostly party-line vote of 52-40, Democrats fell short of the 60 votes needed to clear a procedural hurdle and move toward passage of a package of 35 bills that enjoy wide support.

The measures have been held up for months by Sen. Tom Coburn, an Oklahoma Republican and physician who has been dubbed "Dr. No."

While not mentioning his name, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid accused Coburn of playing politics with the legislation at the expense of millions of Americans who he said would be helped by the various measures.

"Republican senators have acted within their rights to block and delay action," said Reid, a Nevada Democrat. "But simply being within their rights does not put them in the right."

Even a lone senator can hold up legislation by forcing a number of procedural votes. To save time, Senate leaders usually try to pass legislation through consensus.

Coburn decried the $10 billion in spending the bundled bill would authorize and wants to be able to offer amendments to cut spending on other programs by the same amount.

"This is a debate about priorities," Coburn said. "We should be paying for it. We should be making the hard choices."

Republican presidential candidate John McCain did not vote on the procedural motion but issued a statement in support of Coburn, saying the bill was loaded with special interest provisions and "represents Washington at its worst."

The bill, which includes measures to help investigate unsolved murders from the civil rights era and provide support services for mothers suffering from postpartum depression, also was caught up in a Senate debate over rising gasoline prices.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky urged fellow Republicans to vote against the measure in an effort to keep the Senate focused on stalled energy legislation.

McConnell said record energy costs are the chief concern among Americans and that Republicans are seeking ways to provide relief by opening up more U.S. coastline and Alaska's National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling.

Republicans have denied Democrats a vote on a narrower bill designed to rein in oil speculators who critics have blamed for contributing to a rapid rise in energy prices.