Despite Cruz, Senate heads toward Obamacare vote

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic-controlled Senate is on a path toward defeating tea party attempts to dismantle President Barack Obama's health care law, despite an overnight talkathon on the chamber's floor led by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.

The freshman Cruz and other conservative Republicans were trying to delay a must-pass spending bill, but were virtually sure to lose a test vote on that legislation planned for later today.

Since Tuesday afternoon, Cruz — with occasional remarks by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and other GOP conservatives — has controlled the Senate floor and railed against Obamacare. By 9 a.m. EDT Wednesday, Cruz and his allies had spoken for more than 18 hours, the fourth-longest Senate speech since precise record-keeping began in 1900.

That surpassed March's 12-hour, 52-minute speech by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., like Cruz a tea party lawmaker and potential 2016 presidential contender, and filibusters by such Senate icons as Huey Long of Louisiana and Robert Byrd of West Virginia.

Paul, who has questioned Cruz's tactics, gave the admittedly tired Texan a respite this morning by joining the debate and criticizing Obamacare.