Obama Health Care Vote
Obama Health Care Vote – Looking to push the “long and wrenching debate” over health care into its final stages, President Barack Obama asked lawmakers to schedule an up-or-down vote on overhaul legislation “in the next few weeks.”
“No matter which approach you favor, I believe the United States Congress owes the American people a final vote on health-care reform,” Obama said Wednesday in remarks at the White House. “We have debated this issue thoroughly, not just for the past year, but for decades.”
The president’s call for an “up-or-down vote” likely opens the way for Democrats to use the budget reconciliation process to pass the legislation without Republican support. Though he didn’t mention reconciliation specifically, Obama said health-care overhaul should be allowed to pass with a simple majority, pointing to past votes on Cobra health coverage and both Bush administration tax cuts.
The Democrats’ likely strategy would see the House pass the legislation approved by the Senate in December. The House would then vote on a companion bill with changes to the Senate version.
There are concerns among House Democrats, however, that there’s no guarantee the Senate would pass a package of changes to the bill through reconciliation. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D., Md.) alluded to that problem Wednesday, acknowledging that assurances to the House would have to be made.
“We’re working on having that faith verified,” Hoyer said.
Rep. Jason Altmire (D., Pa.), who voted ‘no’ on the House health bill and faces a tough election this fall, said that matter will be crucial. “Assuming that I was comfortable with the reconciliation language, which is far from certain, there would have to be a guarantee that what we were voting on with the Senate bill would be amended,” Altmire said. “That’s the problem that they’re going to have in rounding up the votes.”
As expected, Obama rejected the pleas of GOP lawmakers to scrap the legislation and start over. “For us to start over now could simply lead to delay that could last for another decade or even more,” Obama said. He challenged Republicans who favor less oversight of the insurance sector to vote against his proposal.
Obama will take his health-care pitch on the road next week, discussing the issue in Philadelphia and St. Louis on Monday and Wednesday, respectively.
Obama, who repeated his pledge to incorporate some Republican ideas in the health package, urged lawmakers to put aside politics, saying they need to show an ability to tackle tough issues.
Obama Health Care Vote
Tags: Assurances, barack obama, Budget Reconciliation Process, Bush Administration, Cobra Health, Companion Bill, Gop Lawmakers, Health Bill, Health Care Reform, Health Coverage, House Democrats, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Jason Altmire, Leader Steny Hoyer, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Republican Support, Senate Bill, Senate Version, Steny Hoyer, United States Congress
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