Senate Republicans today voted to block an energy bill that would have imposed a windfall profits tax and ended $17 billion in tax breaks for oil companies. The vote was 51 to 43, short of the 60 Democrats needed to break a filibuster. Six Republicans and nearly all Democrats supported moving the bill to the floor of the Senate. GOP Sens. Norm Coleman of Minnesota, Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe of Maine, Charles Grassley of Iowa, Gordon Smith of Oregon, and John Warner of Virginia broke with their caucus to vote for the bill. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D) of Louisiana was the lone Democrat to oppose it.

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