Hours after President Obama exhorted Democratic lawmakers to “answer the call of history,” the House hit an unprecedented milestone on the path to health-care reform, approving a trillion-dollar package late Saturday that seeks to overhaul private insurance practices and guarantee comprehensive and affordable coverage to almost every American.
After months of acrimonious partisanship, Democrats closed ranks on a 220-215 vote that included 39 defections, mostly from the party’s conservative ranks. But the bill attracted a surprise Republican convert: Rep. Anh “Joseph” Cao of Louisiana, who represents the Democratic-leaning district of New Orleans and had been the target of a last-minute White House lobbying campaign. GOP House leaders had predicted their members would unanimously oppose the bill.
We’ll have to have a talk with Cao – but my bet is that since the Stupak amendment passed, he felt it was ok to vote for the bill as it didn’t do the morally reprehensible thing if having taxpayer funded abortion. Its still horrible policy, however, and Cao voted the wrong way.
I like how the MSM says Democrats “closed ranks” – 39 of them broke ranks and joined the GOP. That is a fractured party being ruled by ideologues – and we’re going to whack ’em hard next year.
Now – anyone want to guess on whether or not they’ll get 60 votes for cloture in the Senate? I think Harry will try by passing the most watered-down bill possible and then using the trick of the conference committee to ram through Obama-care, Pelosi-style.
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