Although it was passed in May by an overwhelming majority by the House of Representatives, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2013 is stalled in the Senate.

During 45 minutes of partisan debate late last month, Republican leader Mitch McConnell (Ky., pictured at right of Senate seal) verbally sparred with his Democratic counterpart, Harry Reid (Nev., pictured left), the one accusing the other of dragging his feet on bills each sponsored.

For his part, McConnell railed against Reid for holding up the NDAA 2013, a bill he described as critical to the “future of the country.”

“It’s pretty obvious, here, the reason the Senate is so inactive is because the Majority Leader doesn't want to take up any serious bills that are important to the future of the country. He mentioned "cybersecurity, why isn’t it on the floor? Defense authorization, why isn't it on the floor?,” McConnell asked.

Reid countered, claiming that Republicans are likewise delaying similarly important bills. Accordingly, Reid told McConnell that he would be putting the NDAA 2013 “on the back burner” until the body can come to an agreement on the issue of cybersecurity. Last week, the Senate rejected a cybersecurity bill sponsored by Reid and others.

Click here to read the entire article.