Senate votes down Obama jobs measure

By Josiah Ryan - 11/03/11 03:26 PM ET

For the third time in four weeks, Senate Republicans on Thursday voted in unison to block a piece of President Obama's jobs package.

The GOP senators were joined by one Democrat, Sen. Ben Nelson (Neb.), and Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman (Conn.) in rejecting a procedural motion on legislation that would spend $60 billion on transportation infrastructure programs. The vote was 51-49.

The spending was offset with a new tax on income earned above $1 million that Republicans oppose.

Many Republicans, including Sen. Jeff Sessions (Ala.), said they favored the idea of patching up the nation’s roads, railways and bridges, but refused to agree to any tax hike.

“Sen. Reid comes in with a tax-increase plan, a big spending plan totaling $60 billion, and we are supposed to pass this?â€