GOP, Democrats Gird For Healthcare Fight
Issue date: 3/2/10 Section: News
WASHINGTON, Feb. 28 (UPI) -- Leading U.S. Republicans Sunday said the Obama administration faces a messy fight if it tries to enact healthcare legislation through reconciliation tactics.
"This is a car that can't be recalled and fixed. There are too many things wrong with it," Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said of the administration's healthcare plan.
With Republicans unified against the plan, Democrats mostly likely will try to use a process called reconciliation that is designed for budget-related bills and needs only a simply majority vote in the Senate, Alexander said Sunday on ABC's "This Week."
That tactic, however, has never been tried on "anything of this size and magnitude and complexity," Alexander said.
Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said Democrats lack the votes to move the Obama plan though the House because the plan would fail to lower insurance premiums and end up costing taxpayers more than they pay now.
"It's a cost nightmare," Ryan said on Fox News Sunday.
The healthcare bill stalled in Congress after Republican Scott Brown won the Massachusetts race to replace the late Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy. The bill, however, gained some momentum after President Obama's bipartisan summit Thursday, leading Democrats said.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland, said the Obama administration's plan would lower costs and give millions of uninsured Americans access to affordable, quality healthcare.
Speaking on CBS's "Face the Nation," Hoyer sidestepped questions about whether there were enough votes in the House to pass the plan, saying once specific legislation had been introduced "then Democrats will start counting votes for that bill."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said lawmakers in the House need to assure the public of an affordable bill, see what the Senate offers and then vote.
"We all agree that the present system is unsustainable," Pelosi told ABC News. "What's the point of talking about it any longer?"
"This is a car that can't be recalled and fixed. There are too many things wrong with it," Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said of the administration's healthcare plan.
With Republicans unified against the plan, Democrats mostly likely will try to use a process called reconciliation that is designed for budget-related bills and needs only a simply majority vote in the Senate, Alexander said Sunday on ABC's "This Week."
That tactic, however, has never been tried on "anything of this size and magnitude and complexity," Alexander said.
Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said Democrats lack the votes to move the Obama plan though the House because the plan would fail to lower insurance premiums and end up costing taxpayers more than they pay now.
"It's a cost nightmare," Ryan said on Fox News Sunday.
The healthcare bill stalled in Congress after Republican Scott Brown won the Massachusetts race to replace the late Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy. The bill, however, gained some momentum after President Obama's bipartisan summit Thursday, leading Democrats said.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland, said the Obama administration's plan would lower costs and give millions of uninsured Americans access to affordable, quality healthcare.
Speaking on CBS's "Face the Nation," Hoyer sidestepped questions about whether there were enough votes in the House to pass the plan, saying once specific legislation had been introduced "then Democrats will start counting votes for that bill."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said lawmakers in the House need to assure the public of an affordable bill, see what the Senate offers and then vote.
"We all agree that the present system is unsustainable," Pelosi told ABC News. "What's the point of talking about it any longer?"
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