Arizona's Senators "swallowed hard" (McCain's words) and voted to approve the debt ceiling/deficit reduction deal, and Sen. Jon Kyl set out his plans to undermine it in his floor speech shortly before the vote. Kyl and Sen. John McCain were among the 74 Senators to vote "aye" and to send it to the President; 26 Senators voted "nay".
Kyl, the Senate Minority Whip who is retiring from the Senate at the end of next year, gave a bitter speech blaming the White House and the "tax and spend" Democrats for the across-the-board cuts that will be triggered if the Congressional committee cannot agree on further deficit-reduction measures. He stated that he would tell members of the so-called "Super Congress" that the debate should be "taken to the American people" and that he would not countenance the "armageddon" that the automatic cuts to the Defense Department would cause.
Kyl indicated he would - if necessary - urge his "colleagues to disregard this provision". He acknowledged that the Congressional negotiators should not have approved the trigger, but said the President nearly violated his oath of office by including it in negotiations. Kyl said he would vote for the measure because his no vote would not change the outcome, but that he would continue fighting it.
The legislation now goes to the President's desk for signature.
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