Sen. John Kerry did not vote, according to the Senate roll call.
Massachusetts' U.S. Senators: John Kerry, left, a Democrat, and Scott Brown, right, a Republican.U.S. Senator Scott Brown, a Massachusetts Republican, joined the rest of his party Friday in supporting a House GOP debt limit proposal that ultimately failed in the Senate.
Sen. John Kerry, a Democrat who voiced his opposition to the measure on the Senate floor Thursday night, did not vote, according to the Senate roll call.
The measure, which had passed the Republican-controlled House by a margin of 234-190, failed in the Democrat-controlled Senate by a 51-46 vote.
Brown's vote somewhat clarified his position on the debt ceiling debate, a subject he has addressed only in general terms up to today's vote. His comments today were similarly cautious, advocating cooperation over partnership among Congressional leaders and referring to his own vote as "symbolic."
Brown did, however, make clear his support for a balanced budget requirement, which was included in the House GOP 'Cut, Cap and Balance Act'. In a statement, he said:
A balanced budget requirement is something we have in Massachusetts, and I think it would be good for the entire country at a time when we are $14.3 trillion dollars in debt and it is rising every day. Now both parties need to come together on a plan that will allow us to avoid default, make substantial cuts in spending, which is reasonable and bipartisan and will have a chance of being signed into law. Let’s stop the negative politics and partisan bickering and get down to work. Time is running short.
On Thursday, Kerry expressed support for a measure proposed by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Majority Leader Harry Reid that would raise the debt ceiling incrementally through the 2012 elections, but The Associated Press reports that prospects for that proposal are not good, either.
Read more about today's vote and the ongoing debate over the nation's debt ceiling from The Associated Press.