Chaos erupted in the Pennsylvania Senate on Wednesday as it passed a bill to end state funding for a program that provides about $200 a month to the state’s poorest citizens.

The measure, clearly one of the most controversial parts of the 2019-20 state budget package, passed the House last week following a rancorous debate. But that was tame compared to the Senate’s fireworks. Ultimately, Gov. Tom Wolf had to intervene to get the Senate back on the business of passing the 2019-20 budget.

The fracas featured Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati, R-Jefferson County, temporarily seizing the rostrum from Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman. It included Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman shouting at Fetterman - “Do your job!” - and yelling so much he later became hoarse. Democrats yelled from the floor, imploring debate to salvage the cash assistance program.

Scarnati decried what he called “chaos” and unacceptable behavior in the Senate. Fetterman said he viewed Scarnati’s move as a hostile takeover.

Amidst the raucous session, the Senate ultimately approved the bill by a 26-24 vote, with Republican Sens. Tom Killion of Delaware County and Robert “Tommy” Tomlinson of Bucks County siding with the Democrats in opposition. It now goes to Wolf for enactment; however, he has not indicated what he will do with it.

PART 2 of Republican leadership attempting to silence @SenatorMuth and @PaSenateDems from offering comments on a bill to eliminate the the PA General Assistance program.



We will not be silenced.#SaveGA pic.twitter.com/cnsAUP7EFX — PaSenateDems (@PaSenateDems) June 26, 2019

The bill eliminates the cash assistance program, effective Aug. 1. It was projected to cost $54 million in cash payments to individuals most of whom don’t qualify for or are awaiting approval for other assistance. The language is bundled with a separate subsidy for Philadelphia hospitals and a Medicaid-related program.

The Senate debate of the bill kicked off with an in-chambers protest by members of the Philadelphia-based Poor People’s Campaign, who were watching the proceedings from the fourth-floor visitors gallery.

Several of the demonstrators dropped a banner over the rails urging the Senators to save the general assistance program, while others began a series of chants, including: “Stop the war on the poor” and “No cuts to GA; no way”.

Fetterman placed the Senate into recess while about a dozen of the protestors were ushered out of the gallery.

“We’re here to say that these people (on the state’s general assistance program) are human beings here, and their lives are at stake,” said one of protestors, Pat Albright of Philadelphia. “These lives should not be dispensable.”

It wasn’t long after that when the lieutenant governor lost control of the chamber during a debate over the first in a series of Democratic amendments attempting to salvage the program for certain segments of the populations – domestic violence victims, people with disabilities, veterans, etc. – or delay its elimination.

Senate President Pro Tempore @SenatorScarnati, Senate Majority Leader @JakeCorman, and members of the Senate Republican Caucus offered the following statement on the Senate’s action during today’s debate on House Bill 33. https://t.co/2ukfoFShiG pic.twitter.com/RMLr7wN7Bd — PA Senate GOP (@PASenateGOP) June 26, 2019

Corman made a motion to cut off debate on that Democratic amendment.

That lit the fuse.

Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa loudly and bitterly protested the potential closure of the debate. Fetterman, who has routinely taken his cues from the Senate Parliamentarian Megan Martin in his first budget season as lieutenant governor, declared the Senate at ease.

The bedlam continued during the break as Corman raised his voice to demand a vote on his motion and Costa shouted over him to allow the debate to continue.

With the rostrum empty, Scarnati – who typically runs the floor when the lieutenant governor is absent – grabbed the gavel, called the chamber back to session and asked for a vote on Corman’s motion. As a clerk began the roll call, Democrats stormed off the floor.

Fetterman said later in an interview with PennLive that he viewed Scarnati’s move as a hostile takeover.

“I left the rostrum to talk to the Republican leadership, to try to broker a dignified conclusion to this debate,” Fetterman said. “I said, ‘Guys, this doesn’t have to go this way. What are we doing here?’”

That, he said, is when Scarnati made his move.

Fetterman, easily the biggest human in the Senate chamber, said he returned to the rostrum and asked Scarnati to stand down, but got no response. He didn’t try to elbow his way back onto the dais or grab the gavel back from Scarnati because he didn’t want to make a bad situation worse, he said.

Under the Senate rules, once Corman was recognized and his motion to end debate was offered, the proper procedure called for holding a vote on his motion. Corman’s motion, under Senate rules, is not subject to debate. But Fetterman refused to call for a vote.

Scarnati’s view of the exchange was one of having the Senate floor being “ambushed and hijacked by those who did not want to follow the rules."

“I have never witnessed the presiding officer refusing to follow the rules of the Senate,” he said. He explained he took the rostrum to keep the rules in place.

“This type of behavior is unacceptable. Unacceptable name-calling. Unacceptable yelling votes of ‘Hell, no.’ Unacceptable behavior in the gallery by guests I assume of members of the Senate. This is unacceptable. This isn’t governing. This is chaos,” Scarnati said in a late afternoon news conference where Republicans presented their side.

After leaving the Senate floor, the Democrats held a hastily arranged news conference to voice their outrage over the Republicans attempt to shut down the debate.

Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa of Allegheny County called it disturbing, disheartening, and disgusting that the Republicans wanted to deny help to the 11,095 people, as of May, who received this assistance.

“The amount of money this would have cost is nowhere near what we saved by helping these men and women," Costa said. "It is ridiculous and disheartening that these folks lack compassion for the people of Pennsylvania.”

Freshman Sen. Katie Muth, D-Montgomery County, who has helped to lead the fight to keep this public assistance program intact, added, “I know I’m new here. My first budget season. I shouldn’t be shocked. I’m really not shocked. I’m more outraged that this is the stance that our colleagues, if we want to call them that, on the other side are thinking to take away $200 a month of general assistance when they can collect two days of per diems that equals more than that."

She said, “Who are they? And who do we represent? If you’re not here fighting for the most vulnerable, why are you here?”

When they returned to the Senate floor, Muth was recognized by Fetterman to read a statement from John Boyd, a former homeless man from Philadelphia who said the cash assistance program has helped him turn his life around. But as she read the letter, Corman called for a point of order.

Fetterman refused to acknowledge him. Corman shouted over Muth for nearly three minutes as she read the statement.

“You need to do your job, Mr. President,” Corman said. “Bring the chamber to order, Mr. President. It’s not a partisan job. You need to follow the rules. You need to follow the rules, Mr. President.”

Fetterman responded, “the chair continues to acknowledge Senator Muth.” Corman shouted even louder. “We appeal your decision, Mr. President," Corman yelled, and continued to call on him to follow the Senate rules and accused him of becoming a partisan hack.

“That’s what he was becoming by ignoring the rules of the Senate,” Corman said at the Republicans’ news conference.

Corman, whose voice was hoarse at the news conference from the earlier shouting match, called it an orchestrated ambush by Democrats to offer amendments that already been rejected in Senate committees. He said Fetterman chose to join with the Democrats to make this demonstration against the rules and ignored the parliamentarian.

"When you are orchestrating that with the other party, that’s what you are becoming. You are becoming a partisan hack,” Corman said.

Scarnati said he reached out to the governor to discuss what happened on the floor and warned him that without adhering to rules, the entire budget process was at risk of not getting done.

“Obviously he talked with Senator Costa. He talked with the lieutenant governor. The lieutenant governor on the floor handed me the gavel and asked me to preside the rest of the day,” Scarnati said. "The governor did get involved but it needed his involvement.”

Late Wednesday afternoon, Senate Republican leaders issued a statement denouncing the Democrats.

“When our rules are not followed, chaos takes over," the Senate GOP said in its statement. “It was a sad day for good government in Pennsylvania and the actions of our colleagues on the other side of the aisle set a dangerous precedent for the future of an institution that we value so greatly. When we disagree with one another we must do so in a respectful manner.”

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