Controversial China yuan bill approved WASHINGTON — In a blow to President Barack Obama, the US Senate late Tuesday effectively killed a jobs bill at the heart of his efforts to turn the sour economy around in the run up to the November 2012 elections. Lawmakers voted 50-49 to advance the $447 billion dollar plan, falling short of the 60 senators needed to do so, in the face of fierce opposition from Republicans eager to deny the president a second term. “Tonight's vote is by no means the end of this fight,” Obama said in a statement released before the vote was over but after its outcome was unmistakable, vowing to move his plan piecemeal “as soon as possible.” And he vowed to pile political pressure on Republicans in a series of votes aimed at forcing them to oppose funds aimed at helping middle class families and block tax hikes on the very richest Americans to pay for the plan. “With so many Americans out of work and so many families struggling, we can't take ‘no' for an answer. Ultimately, the American people won't take ‘no' for an answer,” said the embattled president. The bare majority vote inflated Senate support for the measure, as some Democrats who backed ending debate on the legislation had said they would oppose its final passage — a point that led Republicans to crow that a bipartisan majority was rejecting the bill. Two Democrats broke ranks to oppose the blueprint, while one Republican did not vote, while Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid also voted against the measure in a parliamentary maneuver that allows him to bring up the measure again at any time. The US Senate approved a controversial bill to punish China over its currency in an effort to save American jobs, sending it to the House of Representatives where its fate is uncertain. Beijing has warned the legislation could spark a trade war but it has advanced further than similar US bills in the past, reflecting widespread frustration with China's trade policies and how US lawmakers have seized on voter anxiety about high unemployment ahead of elections in 2012. Democratic Senator Charles Schumer, one of the bill's co-sponsors, said the vote “has put the Chinese on notice: Stop your cheating that is costing our country jobs, or you will face the consequences.” China was quick to respond. The Foreign Ministry in Beijing warned that the bill could disrupt joint efforts by world's two biggest economies to prop up the global recovery and urged the Obama administration to oppose the legislation. Many US economists say China holds down the value of its yuan to give its exporters an edge in global markets. China says it is committed to gradual currency reform and notes that the yuan has risen 30 percent against the dollar since 2005. The bill would allow the US government to slap duties on products from countries found to be subsidizing their exports by undervaluing their currencies. The Senate's 63-35 vote puts the bill in the hands of the Republican-controlled House, which may never vote on the bill despite rank-and-file support. House Speaker John Boehner last week said it would be “dangerous” for Congress to get involved with a foreign country's exchange rate.
