Stupak: Health bill abortion fight can be resolved ('optimistic' on Commiecare™)

KSBY ^ | 3/08/10

[Libloather]

Stupak: Health bill abortion fight can be resolved
Associated Press
Updated: Mar 8, 2010 4:09 PM

TAWAS CITY, Mich. (AP) - Michigan Democrat Bart Stupak says prospects are good for resolving a dispute over abortion that's led some House Democrats to threaten to withhold support of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.

Stupak said Monday he expects to resume talks with House leaders this week about wording that wouldn't impose new limits on abortion rights but also wouldn't allow federal funding of the procedure.

Stupak's emerged as spokesman for about a dozen House Democrats who say the Senate's version of health legislation would authorize federal abortion subsidies. They insist on restoring stiffer restrictions from the House measure.

Stupak tells The Associated Press he's more optimistic than last week. He'd said then that nothing had changed and he didn't think House leaders had the votes to pass the bill.

[Yardstick]

LOL — perfect.

These blue dogs aren’t even worthy of humping a leg.

[grumpygresh]

For the Dims that switch from no to yes and the so called Stupak “principled” pro-life Dims who vote for this bill, the day of reckoning is near. They are toast, the walking dead.

[cmj328]

Reconciliation bypasses cloture.

[Sun]

I don’t know if he’s caving - he always said he wanted the bill, but is against abortion.

Personally, I’m vehemently against the bill, but Stupak never was against it. He was only against the abortion part of the bill.

[satan]

Yes, the generals will attempt to help Obama put down the masses.

LT Colonels start revolutions because they’re not political animals.

[roses of sharon]

Time to build the gallows...and give DC 2 choices.

Retire or hang.

[xkaydet65]

Any work on abortion language comes AFTER Obamacare becomes law. All the GOP can do us tell Stupak they will vote present on any bill. This would pretty much guarantee a failure of of the anti abortion fix. That might make Stupak think twice, BUT they would be called hypocrites and would risk the anger of pro life forces for a very long time. If HotAir is right about Stupak, GAME OVER.

[cmj328]

If Stupak agrees to pass the Senate bill with a “promise to amend later”, then he is acting against his prior statements.

[AuH2ORepublican]

The House and the Senate have been acting under the assumption that only if both houses pass the same bill can a reconciliation “sidecar” be introduced. If the House passes the Senate bill, they would have to trust Obama not to sign it into law until the Senate has passed the sidecar.

And don’t bills passed through budget reconciliation have a ten-year sunset for public spending?

[cmj328]

Legislative rules are pretty fungible. The question is how much they want to bend or break the precedent to achieve their goal. Or rather, how badly they want health care.

[chessplayer]

They must be getting close to the bribe Stupak wants.

[ding_dong_daddy_from_dumas]

Whether or not abortion language can be changed through reconciliation is a matter of the interpretation of Senate parliamentary rules, which are pretty fungible anyway. My thought is, once you put a national health care program through reconciliation, it’s hypocritical to exclude ethical funding restrictions as non-germane. Obviously, though, it’s an important question that needs to be weighed carefully.

This is starting to make sense. Remember when the CBO said that Obamacare cost more than Obama said? Obama invited Emendorf to the WH, and after that, surprise surprise, the CBO said Obamacare not only meets Obama's criteria, but it reduces the deficit.

Now Obama has been talking to the parliamentarian. You can guess where I think this is going.

Also, Stupak really might be waiting for a bribe.

Or, assuming that Stupak is more or less sincere about abortion, it's also possible that Obama will swindle him with an empty promise to add in abortion funding restrictions in reconciliation.

[stephenjohnbanker]

I think Osama Care is dead.

[ding_dong_daddy_from_dumas]

I think Osama Care is dead.

I hope you are right but now Stupak is saying they can work something out, and Pelosi doesn't need that many votes.

[WashingtonSource]

I pray you are right.

[stephenjohnbanker]

It won’t hurt to flood their phone lines in the interim.

[stephenjohnbanker]

“Keep in mind folks any federal version of health care is unconstitutional since Article 1 Section 8 does not specifically grant Congress the power to regulate health care.”

I read here that 37 states are getting ready to opt out.

[stephenjohnbanker]

“Americans held hostage by a criminal mob.”

Absolutely.

[dforest]

It would be easier to just say Obama and the democrats follow no rules or laws, they just change them, ignore them, or flat out threaten people. The Constitution they keep around like a bottle of “Head On” to be applied directly as needed when it suits them.

If Obamacare gets passed, the American people will have lost another major battle for liberty. Wonder how much we are willing to lose? When a person loses the freedom over their own body, they have lost about everything.

Next step, Immigration.

[ding_dong_daddy_from_dumas]

I read here that 37 states are getting ready to opt out.

Small comfort. We still have to pay some of the taxes.