If at First You Don't Succeed... Last week, a bid by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to invoke cloture (to stop debate and allow voting) on the Senate tax break extender bill fell short by ten votes (see background squib). But it appears that the Senate will vote on the cloture motion again later this afternoon. What has happened in the interim to suggest a different outcome this time? Senate Republicans have come under increasing pressure from corporations which desperately want their tax incentives extended or revived, even if it means increases in certain business taxes to pay for it (see Corporate Community Copacetic). Businesses have sought to rally support for the measure in recent days, going so far as to warn senators that not backing the tax breaks would harm the economy. In a letter sent to Senate Finance Committee chair Max Baucus (D-MT) today, 379 companies, including some of the largest in the U.S., among them Bank of America, Boeing, Citigroup, the Ford Motor Co., Pflzer and Walt Disney, wrote: Swift action is now needed by the Senate to enact a tax extenders package that will bring significant positive benefits to the U.S. economy. We applaude this display of corporate fiscal responsibility and will share the full text of the letter and the results of the cloture vote with you as soon as they become available.