A Senate source tells me that Harry Reid is again attempting to block an important fiscal reform. Senator Judd Gregg's line-item veto amendment stands in the Reid crosshairs now. He has threatened to make it a "long weekend" for Republicans if they attempt to force a vote on it.

NTU signed a coalition letter last year supporting a House version of the line-item veto and we sent a Vote Alert on the Gregg Amendment to the Senate indicating that we are watching this issue closely and will rate it heavily in our annual Rating of Congress.

If the early part of this year tells us anything, it is that Democrats will quietly try to thwart true fiscal discipline while a small group of dedicated Republicans holds their feet to the fire. Kudos to Senators Coburn, DeMint, Gregg, and others for fighting the good fight. Republican Leadership deserves a little bit of credit too, for they've been more active in these fights than in the 109th Congress. Here's hoping they can win a few of them.

Call your Senator now and tell them that you're watching, too! 202-224-3121. Unless you let your Senator know exactly how important this issue is, it will succumb to Harry Reid's pressure.

**UPDATE 4:35pm** Senator Gregg is on the floor speaking about the amendment now. Democrats are claiming that the line-item veto amendment is "too complicated" to vote on today. Apparently, the many votes in the past on this issue aren't enough for them. Go watch online

**UPDATE 4:56pm** Senator Allard (R-CO) is on the floor now. Unsurprisingly, this 11-time Taxpayer Friend Award-winner (8 in the Senate, 3 in the House) is supportive of the line-item veto.

**UPDATE 6:50pm** Reid and Gregg have taken the amendment off the floor and begun negotiations behind closed doors. That way, Reid gets to save a bit of face and avoid an embarassing loss on a vote like last week with the DeMint amendment. Hopefully, Senator Gregg and his allies will remain steadfast and demand a vote on the line-item veto. As Mark Tapscott notes, this tactic has been used before to kill a pro-taxpayer amendment.

Now's the time to start lighting up the phones and filling up the inboxes! Call the Senate switchboard at 202-224-3121 or visit this page to email your Senator and tell them that the line-item veto deserves a fair vote and deserves passage.