WASHINGTON -- After a series of delays and emotional protests, the Senate on Tuesday night approved a bill that will help veterans exposed to toxic burn pits.
The Senate began voting on the PACT Act around 5 p.m., with votes on three Republican amendments before a vote on final passage of the bill. Republicans agreed to the deal.
"I believe it will pass and pass this evening," Schumer said during his weekly press conference, predicting the outcome.
A group of Democrats were set to hold a press conference later Tuesday night following the vote.
The PACT Act passed the Senate earlier this year. But after a quick fix in the House required the bill to be voted on again, 26 Republican senators changed their votes and blocked swift passage of the act last week -- sparking outrage among Democrats and veterans groups.
Comedian and activist Jon Stewart has become the face of this legislation, joining veterans in protest outside the Capitol for the last several days. He's harshly criticized Republicans -- who in turn cited concerns about Democratic spending maneuvers -- and demanded action from lawmakers.
"America's heroes who fought in our wars outside sweating their a---- off with oxygen, battling all kinds of ailments" while Republican senators were sitting "in the air conditioning walled off from any of it," Stewart said during a press conference in front of the Capitol building on Thursday. "They don't have to hear it, they don't have to see it. They don't have to understand that these are human beings."
Stewart was in the chamber Tuesday night for the vote, along with about 50-75 vets and supporters of the bill.
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