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12:47 pm CST - February 08, 2010
Posted under The Scoop
Capitol Hill Leaders Welcome a Health Care Summit
CQ Politics
Congressional leaders say they welcome President Obama’s idea for a health care summit — but it is far from clear that more talking will deliver Republican votes for any bill that Democrats rewrite.
“Senate Democrats join with the president in reaffirming our commitment to seeking a bipartisan solution to health reform,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid , D-Nev. “We have promoted the pursuit of a bipartisan approach to health reform from day one.”
House GOP Leader John A. Boehner of Ohio said he, too, was looking forward to the summit. But in a statement, he launched another attack on Democrats’ current plans.
“Obviously, I am pleased that the White House finally seems interested in a real, bipartisan conversation on health care,” he said. “The problem with the Democrats’ health care bills is not that the American people don’t understand them; the American people do understand them, and they don’t like them.”
Congressional Republicans have largely resisted the Democratic effort to write health care legislation. Only one Republican member voted for the House bill when it passed in November. No Republicans voted for the Senate bill during procedural motions or on final passage.
Obama’s call for a summit makes it less likely that a compromise will be struck before March. Democrats have been struggling to find a way to move the Senate-passed bill through the House, along with a package of yet-to-be-determined compromises that would guarantee that House Democrats would support the effort.
Negotiators have been working quietly behind the scenes, but for the time being are saying little publicly about the effort while they focus on jobs legislation.
Obama on Sunday proposed holding a bipartisan, bicameral health care summit on Feb. 25. In an interview on CBS during the Super Bowl pre-game show, the president said he hoped to review proposals in Senate- and House-passed health plans, as well as those offered by GOP critics.
“I want to ask them to put their ideas on the table, and then after the recess, which will be a few weeks away, I want to come back and have a large meeting, the Republicans and Democrats, to go through systematically all the best ideas that are out there and move it forward,” Obama said.











9 Comments
sonny
1:35 pm CST
February 08, 2010
Obama, Pelosi and Reid still don’t get it. We don’t want a government run health care system period. Lower taxes, lower the deficit, create jobs for American citizens. Deport 12 million or more illegal aliens instead of giving them amnesty. Forget about global warming farce, quit trying to snow or scare the American people. We’re not falling for your lies anymore.
SJK
2:15 pm CST
February 08, 2010
This is going to be interesting since in the beginning committees in both houses that were offering amendments for this healthcare bill, all and any amendment offered by a Republican was turned down and voted against! The only amendments that were considered were the very radical and government-run amendments that these radical liberals want to ram down our throats! They already had their minds made up on what they wanted in this healthcare bill that is not about health, but all about high taxes, rationing, huge bureaucracies, and government control! I sent a letter to our 2 Senators and my Representative (who is a very radical politician) and asked them to urge the leaders of their Houses to tell President Obama at the meeteing he wants with them on the healthcare bill on February 25, 2010 to tell him that the majority of the American people want them to START OVER on this healthcare bill and make it more affordable, fair, not include illegals even if, God forbid, they get amnesty, Medicare and Mdicare Advantage not be cut to fund others (illegals) to be insured, tort reform must be included in this bill. people who do not want to get insurace should not be fined or have to serva a jail sentence because of their choice, the total healthcare plan should not be revamped—people who want to keep their healthcare and doctors should be able to do that, and they should work at getting those who are not insured to get insured and leave those of us who already have insurance alone! I don’t know if my emails to them will help, but they can’t hurt! I am going to give them a call as often as I can—everybody should do that…as often as possible!
CWJensen
2:31 pm CST
February 08, 2010
MAKE SURE YOU ALL CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES and MAKE IT PERFECTLY CLEAR WE NOT NOT WANT ANY PART OF WHAT IS NOW UNDER CONSIDERATION.
FURTHERMORE UNTIL SPENDING AND TAXES ARE CUT and AMERICA is BACK TO WORK, WE DO NOT WANT CONGRESS TO CONSIDER ANY LEGISLATION THAT DOES NOT SPECIFICALLY ADDRESS THOSE TWO ISSUES PERIOD.
beryl
6:19 pm CST
February 08, 2010
It is obviously a trap for Republicans. May I assume that if I am smart enogh to figure this out. our leaders will,also?
CWJensen
7:02 pm CST
February 08, 2010
The DEMONcrats are hoping the IDIOTS in the REPUBLICAN party are still as STUPID as they were when they got their collective @$$e$ kicked.
They may just be CORRECT…………………………………………if they go running into this AMBUSH they will join the UNEMPLOYED incumbent Demon crats in November.
Christian Archer
10:30 pm CST
February 08, 2010
Harry Reid said, “We have promoted the pursuit of a bipartisan approach to health reform from day one.” That is a bold-faced lie. How could the DEMONcrats have promoted a bipartisan ObamaCare reform when they closed the doors and did everything in secret and the “Republicrats” weren’t invited. Harry Reid is a ………I’m mad!
John A. Boehner needs to be voted out of office. He is another moderate “big tent,” Rockefeller Republicrat. When I listen to him on YouTube pontificating, I get thoroughly disgusted.
The DEMONcrats are trying to wear us down to a point that we’ll give in to their ways. They won’t go away until they are removed from office, one by one. Their mantra, “Everybody has a RIGHT to healthcare.”
All you Republican legislaturers reading this, KEEP STALLING AND DRAWING THE OBAMACARE ISSUE OUT! That way we Christians and conservatives win.
JourneyHome
12:33 pm CST
February 08, 2010
“Use Senate reconciliation and expand Medicare via the Senate’s buy-in provisions. The CBO has already signed off on this as a means of saving money.
More importantly, if more Americans can do a buy-in with Medicare, it creates more cost control (because there’s a genuine “public option” competitor).
It also helps to solve the problems of pre-existing conditions, because Medicare does not deny coverage on this basis.
Allowing a Medicare buy-in to Americans under 65 would give people a genuine alternative to private insurance and thereby render the pre-existing question moot.
It would also lower Medicare costs by expanding the risk pool of patients (the great bulk of medical expenses are accounted for by a small number of people, mostly the elderly, requiring very expensive treatment).
And it would substantially enhance the global competitiveness of American corporations. After all, in what other country in the world is health care a marginal cost of production for business?” – Roosevelt Institute Marshall Auerback
sonny
2:33 pm CST
February 08, 2010
All Obama is trying to do is bolster his image and the Democrats for the 2010 and 2012 elections. He wants to make it look like the Republicans are the obstructioness party. If the Republicans are dumb enough to fall for this then they deserve what they get.
A Dumas
4:20 pm CST
February 08, 2010
BHO, February, 2009: “I want a bill on my desk by August!”
BHO, September, 2009: “I want a bill on my desk by December!”
BHO, December, 2009: “I want a bill on my desk before the year’s end!”
BHO, February, 2010: “There’s no hurry, we just want to get this right.”
A true politician, if I ever saw one. Here’s a man who can kiss a baby while stealing candy from it. After an entire year of unsuccessful backroom dealings and midnight ballots, Obama shifts tactics and now plays the “can’t we all just get along?” card. I don’t believe him, and I don’t think a lot of others do either.
Health reform is dead unless Obama scraps his plan and takes small, focused steps to actually correct the problems of the current health care industry, or the Democrats resort to the process of reconciliation.
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