Washington - Today, Senate Republicans voted in lock step for the second time in two days to block work on the Wall Street reform legislation from beginning. U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), a member of the Banking Committee who has helped craft the reform bill, released the following statement:

"Families who have suffered the consequences of big bank recklessness must be watching from afar and wondering who would actively block us from simply beginning the work on Wall Street accountability legislation. This just doesn't make sense to people who have spent the past few years worried about their jobs, their homes and their savings - nor should it. Our Republican colleagues need to step out of the back rooms where they strategize with Wall Street and step on to the Senate floor to get to work protecting families."

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