U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn.WASHINGTON – Despite its easy passage in the Senate earlier this week, Sen. Lamar Alexander’s top legislative priority is being slow-walked by House Republicans as he heads into re-election season.
To much fanfare Monday evening, Alexander’s online sales tax legislation breezed through the Senate, 69-27. But the controversial bill must pass Congress’s other half to reach President Barack Obama’s desk.
The legislation’s path hit turbulence Tuesday when House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, joined a key House committee’s top leaders to stonewall the bill for the foreseeable future.
“I imagine it’ll take weeks,” Alexander said Wednesday. “I hope they do it this year.”
House conservatives see the bill as touchy because they consider it a new tax, but Alexander and other proponents insist it only allows states to collect tax already owed.