The United States Senate has defeated an attempt to invoke cloture on financial reform legislation pushed by Democrats, voting 57-42 for cloture. Sixty votes are needed to cut off debate.

Update: Russ Feingold (D-Wis) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) voted with all but two Republicans (Snowe and Collins) against invoking cloture. Feingold says the test should be whether the legislation will prevent a future similar crisis, and that this legislation fails the test.

Update X2: Harry Reid (D-NV) is evidently pissed. He’s claiming one senator he spoke with broke his word and voted against the terribly flawed legislation.

Update X3: Reid has released this rather moronic statement:

“It is heartbreaking to hear the personal stories from Nevadans who lost everything because of the latest financial crisis: their homes, their jobs and their retirement savings. Senate Democrats are determined to make sure that history does not repeat itself, which is why we will pass and enact Wall Street reform as soon as possible. Today Republicans again made clear whose side they’re on. They chose to stand with Wall Street, allowing another day to go by in which too many Nevadans and Americans are left vulnerable to big bankers’ greed.

“At every stage of this debate, Republicans and their friends on Wall Street have worked overtime to weaken this bill because they view it as a threat to business as usual. They know these reforms – reforms the American people overwhelmingly support and demand – will finally hold Wall Street accountable.

“I am calling on my Republican colleagues to start putting the interests of families, small businesses and seniors over those of big banks on Wall Street.”

Why moronic? Feingold and Cantwell are two of the most liberal members of the U.S. Senate. Feingold is to the left of just about everyone. When you have two liberal members joining with all but two Republicans in defeating legislation, the Senate Majority Leader needs to issue a slightly more, er, nuanced statement than this crap.