At 4:30 p.m. today, on the first day lawmakers are back in Washington following Spring recess, the Senate is scheduled to move forward on a short-term extension of the emergency unemployment benefit filing deadline. This vote, which would retroactively restore benefits that lapsed at the end of March, will be the first in a series of procedural votes required for passage. A final won't occur until later in the week.

Once again, Senate Republicans have vowed to obstruct passage of the bill because they say the extension violates a pay-go rule lawmakers enacted earlier this year. On a conference call with reporters moments ago, Illinois' own Sen. Dick Durbin questioned the logic of blocking a measure that shares bipartisan support. "Republicans have decided to take a stand on the budget deficit on the backs of some people who are struggling," Durbin said. "That troubles me." He added that Republicans ignored the federal deficit when launching two wars and providing tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans.

If approved, this extension would only move the filing deadline back one month. Democrats are still eying a longer-term fix, although the specifics haven't been worked out. "We're going to keep fighting this battle," said Durbin. "We need to redouble our efforts."

UPDATE (6:35 p.m.): The Senate ended the GOP filibuster this evening, voting 60-34 to start debate on a 30-day deadline extension later this week. Four Republicans bucked party leadership and voted for the procedural move.