Posted on 09/27/2013 5:12:03 PM PDT by Jim Robinson
House Republican leaders are stuck with a tough choice after Senate Democrats succeeded in passing a "clean" budget bill which, contrary to GOP wishes, includes full funding for ObamaCare.
The Senate, capping a dramatic week on Capitol Hill, approved the bill on Friday, after Democrats stripped a Republican-backed provision to defund the health law. The final vote was 54-44.
The bill now returns to the House, and is seen by some lawmakers as a sort of legislative hot potato. If the two chambers cannot agree on a final bill by midnight on Monday, then the government will shut down. Neither side wants to be left holding the bill if that happens.
House Speaker John Boehner could, theoretically, just call up the Senate-passed bill and rely on mostly Democrats to pass it. But House Republicans are under heavy pressure, now, from fellow conservatives to stand by their demand that ObamaCare be defunded, or least delayed.
"I don't know of anyone who wants to shut down the government. The only thing we want to shut down is ObamaCare," Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said.
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who staged an unsuccessful effort to stall the bill in the Senate, predicted the House would restore anti-ObamaCare provisions -- and urged Senate Republicans to unite with them. "Today, far too many Republicans joined Harry Reid in giving the Democrats the ability to fund ObamaCare," he said.
Boehner signaled he will not accept the Senate-passed bill in its current form.
"The House will take action that reflects the fundamental fact that Americans don't want a government shutdown and they don't want the train wreck that is ObamaCare," spokesman Brendan Buck said in a statement.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
rockrr: “The potential of a “government shutdown” only entered the picture when dingy harry arbitrarily refused to consider the House bill.”
I’m sorry, but that’s not really true. They did consider the House bill. Senator Cruz opposed cloture. He wanted the bill left open for debate which would have left the government unfunded. By voting for cloture, the bill was then open to amendment (reinsert Obamacare funding) and a final vote. Harry Reid effectively put the House bill up for a vote, and it failed 54 to 44. I think it was actually a bit more complicated than that, but effectively 54 Democrat senators voted against the House bill and voted for an amendment (and the bill) restoring Obamacare funding. It’s a simple matter of numbers, and the Democrats are the majority party in the Senate.
Thank you very much.
The GOPers just wanted to toss it back to the House to leave their images untarnished.
Save the constitution!
Save the Republic!
AMEN to that.
What I don’t think you understand is the Democrats have the ability to restore Obamacare funding no matter what. Senator Cruz’s method was not going to stop the Democrats. It was going to result in a government shutdown. Voting for cloture didn’t stop the Democrats either. That’s also going to result in shutdown. There is no getting around the Democrat majority and the president. 44 Republicans voted against Obamacare. 54 Democrats voted for it.
Has Senator Cruz ever explained the end game here? Let’s say the Republicans had held firm and all voted against cloture. Then what? We wouldn’t have a CR, so we’d still be headed toward a government shutdown. Did Senator Cruz think this was going to give the Republicans more leverage? How? Democrats control the media, the Senate, and the presidency. I have little doubt they fear a shutdown.
Shut er down. We cannot go on like this, Deep in debt and having a plan to make it worse and destroy our health care all in one.
You do realize what a stretch it is to hold the idea of courage and strength while thinking of John The Weakling Weeper? I very much hope I will be astounded.
Oh, I think a lot of Republican senators tarnished their images, but I don’t think did so by voting against Obamacare. They could have disagreed with Senator Cruz in private but backed the man’s play once he started down that path. They didn’t have to attack Senator Cruz. My point is simply that all paths lead to shutdown.
Hey wait just a cotton pickin minute, I thought the Senate needed 60 votes to pass a bill, not 54! Can someone enlighten me as to how they got away with this!
Yes and I know that God works in mysterious ways. Pray that He grants strength and wisdom to Mr. Speaker to see it through. Our very right to exist as a constitutional Republic hangs in the balance.
Worse. He is a populist. No principals whatsoever except whatever is popular at that minute.
Simple. Keep sending individual CRs for different departments without OBIEONEcare funding.
Every individual CR the House sends to the Senate would be sent back with an amendment to fund everything else, including Obamacare. Reid quite obviously (as we just witnessed today) has enough votes to end cloture and add amendments.
I almost wish Boehner would put the Senate’s bill up for a vote in the House. Let’s see if Republicans can stand firm. If they don’t, then we’ll have a target list for 2014.
ROFL. The only thing "Speaker" Bone-head is concerned about is a pack of Marlboro Reds, a tanning booth, and the next tee time.
Unless Henry Clay is reincarnated, Boehner will cave.
Luke 6: 43 “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. 45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.
Here we are, years later and there's another lion driving them. They're comfortable with being pushed around. No wonder they hate Cruz.
The problem with the CR is that it includes residual funding from the stimulus package.
Well said sir. That’s the most inspirational thing I’ve read in a long while.
Godspeed on the surgery mission.
Why not just a quick vote rejecting this bill and send it back without Obamacare once again, say late Monday night.
Stick it back to Reid.
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