Not to keep beating a dead horse, but what about all the people whose benefits ran out in March? They're just as unemployed as everyone else, and they're still facing the same hopeless job market. It's as if all those unemployed folks simply fell off the face of the earth:

With the votes in hand to break a GOP filibuster against an extension of jobless benefits, President Obama stepped up pressure Monday on Republicans in an attack that has become a staple of his midterm election political strategy.

The Senate plans to vote Tuesday to overcome Republican refusal to vote on new aid to an estimated 2.5 million unemployed Americans whose jobless benefits have lapsed because of the length of time they have been out of work.

Once Senate passage of $33.9 billion in extra funds is also approved by the House, a step expected this week, money will begin flowing to jobless workers across the country. California, New York, Florida and Illinois are among the states with the highest numbers of jobless whose benefits have expired. The benefits would be retroactive to June and last through November.

The defeat of the GOP filibuster is considered assured. The move requires 60 votes, a mark Senate Democrats will reach Tuesday after their newest member, Carte Goodwin of West Virginia, is sworn in to take the place of the late Sen. Robert C. Byrd. A key vote will take place minutes after Goodwin takes his place in the Senate.