GOP Senators Vow to Stop Reconciliation



Kyl says GOP has the votes to stop some health bill fixes in the Senate

Slaughter Preps Rule To Avoid Direct Vote On Senate Bill


"House Rules Chairwoman Louise Slaughter is prepping to help usher the healthcare overhaul through the House and potentially avoid a direct vote on the Senate overhaul bill, the chairwoman said Tuesday."

"Slaughter is weighing preparing a rule that would consider the Senate bill passed once the House approves a corrections bill that would make changes to the Senate version."

Uncovered Shocker: Sen. Byrd Single-Handedly Stopped President Clinton From Using Reconciliation


"President Clinton got on the phone and called me also and pressed me to allow his massive health care bill to be insulated by reconciliation's protection."


Obama & Dems in ‘05: 51 Vote ‘Nuclear Option’ Is ‘Arrogant’ Power Grab Against the Founders’ Intent.

Megyn Kelly: Supreme Court Only Hope To Stop The Obama Dictatorship?

Why Obama has not nudged Congress to pass long-stalled treaties


"To pass healthcare reform, Obama needs his core union support. And a push for new trade agreements would alienate Big Labor."

Result: ObamaCare is killing free trade

Can House Democrats trust the Senate?


NO

Talking Babies Reject ObamaCare

Will the Democrats’ “Go It Alone” Approach to Health Care Work?

Parliamentary Hurdle Could Thwart Latest Health Care Overhaul Strategy


"The White House and Democratic Congressional leaders said Tuesday that they were bracing for a key procedural ruling that could complicate their effort to approve major health care legislation, by requiring President Obama to sign the bill into law before Congress could revise it through an expedited budget process."

"Democratic leaders had been contemplating an intricate legislative two-step, by which the House would approve the original Senate health care measure and both chambers would adopt a package of changes in a budget reconciliation bill. Both measures would then be sent to Mr. Obama for his signature."

Obama's attempts to ram health- are starting to resemble a really eventful episode of "The Sopranos"


"But when Obama promised to change the way Washington does business, we didn't think he meant making it a "family" business."

Business groups launch ad against health care bill

Pelosi is looking for guinea pigs


Pelosi: "We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it"

By "we" she means "they" the people, because she THE Queen is exempt from this experiment.

Health Insurance Premiums Fell by 3.2% in 2009


"Describing runaway entitlement spending as “health inflation” is terribly misleading (even when Rep. Ryan does it), because doing so confuses rising prices with rising utilization of medical goods and services by people who are insulated from actual costs by taxpayer-financed subsidies."

"Government subsidies also raise costs to those using private insurance. The CMS notes that 2009’s 4.6% increase “private health insurance premium spending per employee . . . resulted in part from an increase in the proportion of high-cost claims—many of whom have temporary COBRA coverage” [emphasis added], which is 65% financed by taxpayers."

"By contrast, health inflation per se is projected to be 2.8% this year — comparable to other labor-intensive service industries and also down from 3.2% in 2009 and 3% in 2008. Morevoer, “out-of-pocket spending is projected to have grown 2.1 percent in 2009, down from 2.8% in 2008.”

"What about all the uninformed media fuss about health insurance companies supposedly “asking for” premium increases of “up to” 39%?"

"If President Obama really wanted to find out how quickly typical health insurance premiums have been increasing, he could have a staffer call the Bureau of Labor Statistics and ask for Table 3A of the “Consumer Price Index Detailed Report Tables Annual Averages 2009.” It turns out the consumer price index for health insurance premiums fell by 3.2% in 2009."

68% say - Democrats should not pass a bill with GOP support


"Americans and their lawmakers are dramatically out of sync on health care, with large majorities of people looking for bipartisan cooperation that's nowhere in sight."

Under the Byrd rules, legislation is subject to a reconciliation point of order challenge because it is "extraneous" if:

• ...it has no budgetary impact;
• ...it increases outlays or reduces revenues and the instructed committee fails to meet its overall instruction;
• ...it is not in the jurisdiction of the committee reporting the title of the reconciliation bill;
• ...it has a budgetary impact which is merely incidental to the policy components of the provision;
• ...it increases outlays or decreases revenues in any one year after 2014 and that offense is not netted at least to zero by other outlay reductions or revenue increases in that title of the bill in that year; and/or,
• ...IT INCLUDES CHANGES IN SOCIAL SECURITY.

Glenn Apologizes for Massa Interview: Sorry for Wasting Your Time, America

UK: Patients' medical records go online without consent


"Patients’ confidential medical records are being placed on a controversial NHS database without their knowledge, doctors’ leaders have warned."

Krauthammer: Maybe Obama Thinks, ‘If I Just Give My 38th ObamaCare Speech…’


“If you do the math you start with Pelosi’s 220. One death, two retirements, a switch – the Republican who went for ‘yes’ is now a ‘no.’ You’ve got Stupak on abortion, two others on abortion, and perhaps 8 or 9 others. So Pelosi – and you need 216, so she’s got to make up at least 8 or 10 and for every ‘yes’ that you lose you’re going to have to switch a ‘no.'"

Winning health care by a nose not good enough


"Passing legislation that is not only major but, arguably, revolutionary in scope when a majority of the people actually oppose it is hardly the definition of prudence."

"The legislation that instituted the Social Security system in 1935 passed the House by a vote of 372-33 (2 present and 33 not voting), with Republicans favoring it 81-15. The Senate approved its version by a 77-6 vote (12 not voting), with Republicans voting 16-5 in favor. After a conference committee reconciled the two versions final passage came by voice vote in both houses."

"Medicare was approved in 1965 by a 313-115 vote in the House, Republicans favoring it (70-68) and a 68-21 vote (with Republicans opposing it, 17-13) in the Senate."

The question that dogs Dems: What if Obama fails?


"If Obama fails on health care, the fallout could be significant. The rest of his agenda makes health care look easy: controlling air pollution, tackling immigration reform, reforming education, relocating detainees from Guantanamo Bay prison, creating jobs and more."

For every voter who strongly favors the plan, two are strongly opposed


"Why Obama Can't Move the Health-Care Numbers?"

Hatch: Biden Gambit Will ‘Blow Up the Senate’


"Hatch says that Senate Republicans are already prepping to fight Democratic efforts to suppress GOP amendments. “Our conference is in the process of discussing that strategy right now,” he says. “No option will be overlooked. There is a distinct possibility that the Democrats’ very partisan exercise could shut down the Senate. Let’s face it — if they’re going to play this kind of game then we will make sure they have one heck of a rough time from this day forward. There are all kinds of ways we could shut down the Senate, and I know them all.”

Obama's whopper on health care

Health care legislation may include new provision for part-time workers

Democrats' Health Care Bill Will Cut Medicare, Raise Premiums

Alabama Dem lawmaker will break from campaign trail to oppose health reform


"Rep. Artur Davis (D-Ala.), who opposed the House version of the healthcare reform bill last year, will make sure to take a break from his campaign for governor to travel to Washington to vote against the final version of the bill."

Democrats' mishmash


"Senate Democratic leaders have decided to pair an overhaul of federal student lending with healthcare reform, according to a Democratic official familiar with negotiations."

"The only way this makes sense is if the Democrats want an excuse for a failure to pass ObamaCare. Some of the Democrats supporting the health-care bill already oppose the nationalization of the student-loan industry. Adding them together won’t increase support for either program, but more likely will decrease support for a bill that’s already choking on its own massive size."

BOB HERBERT's path: From "More Than Charisma" to "Obama era chanting health care"


At the beginning "Yes, as everyone agrees, Mr. Obama is handsome, fit, smart, and a great speaker. As Ms. Ifill noted in her book, “Voters are attracted to youth, vitality and change.”

And now: "A major employment rebound is the only real way to alleviate the deep economic anxiety that has gripped so many Americans. Unaddressed, that anxiety inevitably evolves into dread and then anger."

But while the nation is desperate for jobs, jobs, jobs, the Democrats have spent most of the Obama era chanting health care, health care, health care.

VIDEO: Pelosi: "...We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it"


Pelosi: "This legislation alone will create 4 million jobs, about 400,000 jobs very soon."

Counting the Heads of House Democrats


Remember to check back in for updates.

Meet the 18 House Dems whose votes matter most on health care


"...as many as a dozen Democrats who voted “yes” on the House version say they will vote “no” on the Senate version because it lacks language to prevent taxpayer subsidies for abortion coverage. Included in this group are Reps. Bart Stupak (Mich.), Jim Oberstar (Minn.), Marion Berry (Ark.) and Dan Lipinksi (Ill.)."

Democrats Voice Health-Bill Doubts


"Some House Democrats wavering over whether to back a health-care overhaul questioned whether it would effectively curb the country's health costs, highlighting a difficult issue that the White House and congressional leaders must address in the final negotiations on the measure."

Makes you wonder how much will Obamacare cost us after all bribes.

Nancy Pelosi's grip on House slips


I want Pelosi to fail. Does that make me racist?

Howard Dean Leads Massive Healthcare Rally of Dozens ...


"Dozens of health care activists are protesting in the nation's capital against what they call an abusive health insurance industry."

57% Predict Health Care Plan Will Hurt The Economy


"Two-out-of-three voters (66%) also believe the health care plan proposed by President Obama and congressional Democrats is likely to increase the federal deficit. That’s up six points from late November and comparable to findings just after the contentious August congressional recess. Ten percent (10%) say the plan is more likely to reduce the deficit and 14% say it will have no impact on the deficit."

Obama: "It's Free!" Students Euphoric Over Obama's Proposal For Losers To Stay On Dad's Insurance

Dem plan to twin healthcare and student lending complicates vote


"Senate Democratic leaders have decided to pair an overhaul of federal student lending with healthcare reform, according to a Democratic official familiar with negotiations."

AP: Stupak “more optimistic” on ObamaCare deal


"Rep. Bart Stupak said he expects to resume talks with House leaders this week in a quest for wording that would impose no new limits on abortion rights but also would not allow use of federal money for the procedure."

Obama Confuses Decades, Inflates Estimated Health Care Savings by $868B


"Obama boasted Monday that Democrats' health care proposals would cut deficits by $1 trillion "over the next decade," a flub that inflated the actual estimate by $868 billion."

As Reid Announces Reelection Bid, Voters Are Reminded That He Has Lost Touch With Nevada


"National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) Communications Director Brian Walsh issued the following statement today in response to Reid’s reelection bid:"

"As Majority Leader Harry Reid officially announces his reelection bid in what will be the toughest battle of his political career, he will be forced to defend his reckless voting record that has saddled future generations with billions of dollars of debt."

Martyr to the Public Option


"Rep. Eric Massa suspects the real reason he is being forced from office is that he wouldn't play ball with the House leadership on health care."

The Time for Whining is Over

Flashback: Obama Explains Support For Partial-Birth Abortions