Congress Again Passes Jobless Aid Extension : Legislation: Senate vote is not sufficient to override threatened veto. GOP raises charge of partisan politics.

Congressional Democrats, sensing a potent issue for next year’s elections, on Tuesday again pushed through a bill extending unemployment benefits for up to 20 weeks, even though President Bush appeared to have rallied enough Republican senators to his side to sustain a promised veto.

The House gave final approval by a veto-proof 300-118 margin, but the Senate’s 65-35 vote fell two short of the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto.

Bush picked up crucial support from Sen. John Seymour (R-Calif.) and four other GOP senators who had voted for a similar bill only last week. On Tuesday, the five cast votes against a $6.4-billion compromise that had been worked out with the House, contending that it was a budget-busting political vehicle.

Seymour, who faces a tough election campaign next year, said that he switched sides because “this new bill clearly was a very partisan political attempt to break the budget accord of last year” between the Administration and Congress.

Sen. Lloyd Bentsen (D-Tex.), a prime sponsor of the legislation, said of the turn of events: “When the President decides to put the heat on and twist arms, he can be effective.”

However, Bentsen held out hope that a veto might be overridden if new economic indicators point to a continuing recession and if GOP lawmakers hear more demands for relief from constituents.

Republican leaders, saying that the Democratic bill obviously has no chance of becoming law, introduced an alternative that would extend expired jobless benefits for up to 10 weeks instead of 20.

With so many lawmakers agreeing that some kind of relief is needed, an eventual compromise seems likely. But, for Democrats, more is at stake than unemployment compensation. They see the issue as a political sledgehammer against a President and a party with a strong hold on the White House.

“This is the issue that divides Democrats and Republicans,” House Democratic Whip David E. Bonior (D-Mich.) declared during raucous partisan debate. “Republicans’ insensitivity and callousness speak to that difference.”

He said that millions of unemployed Americans are waiting for Bush to sign the bill so that they can “feed their families and pay the mortgage.”

Rep. Gerald B. H. Solomon (R-N.Y.) retorted that “the Democrats have intentionally charted a collision course with the Administration instead of supporting a (GOP) bill that could be signed today. With this attempt to politicize an issue, you are deliberately delaying unemployment checks.”

Under current law, jobless benefits can be paid for 26 weeks.

The Democratic-sponsored bill would provide 20 weeks of additional benefits for workers in six states and Puerto Rico where unemployment has averaged more than 8% for the six months ending last July.

California and 12 other states, as well as the nation’s capital, would be eligible for an extra 13 weeks of payments on the basis of a jobless rate averaging 7% or more. Workers in the 31 other states would be entitled to seven weeks of additional benefits.

The President signed a similar bill last August but refused to act to release the funds. Under the newly passed measure, he would be required provide funds if he signs it.

Bush has called the new bill “garbage” on grounds that the economy is recovering and the measure violates last fall’s budget agreement between the Administration and Congress.

Bush seeks adoption of the less expensive GOP alternative, which would be financed through student loan reforms and the auction of federally controlled radio frequencies.

In the Senate, all 57 Democrats and eight Republicans voted for the bill Tuesday. Besides Seymour, GOP senators who switched their support to Bush were John C. Danforth and Christopher S. Bond of Missouri, Dave Durenberger of Minnesota and Conrad Burns of Montana.

In the House, 244 Democrats joined 55 Republicans and an independent in voting for the bill.

The only California House Republicans who backed the measure were Reps. Frank Riggs (R-Windsor) and Wally Herger (R-Rio Oso), who represent hard-hit logging areas. All California Democrats voted for the bill except two who were absent: Reps. Mervyn M. Dymally of Compton and Maxine Waters of Los Angeles.