Policy can never be separated from politics and this morning we got another reminder.
After the New York Times reported yesterday that insurers might try to avoid issuing policies for kids with pre-existing conditions – despite that the reform law meant to prohibit this – the AP reports this today:
After nearly a year battling
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was a hit at last night’s 125th annual Gridiron Dinner, where he filled in for Barack Obama as the main speaker. The punchline of the evening was his prediction for the health care bill:
“It may not happen in my lifetime, or Dick Cheney’s, but hopefully by Easter.”
“We feel like we’ve been pregnant for 17 months, let’s get on with it already.” Those were the words of Democrat Rep. Louise Slaughter, chairwoman of the House Rules Committee, on Saturday, as she moved health reform one step closer to the finish line.
Well put. After all the hearings and debates and town halls; after the Gang of Six …
This has not been a good political week for the Hispanic community. Hispanic leaders in the House caved to Democratic pressure and endorsed the health care bill expected to be voted on in the House this Sunday. The Hispanic Caucus has long been opposed to the Senate version because it would bar illegal immigrants from using their own …
Aren’t there better and tougher targets for Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck than an 11-year-old boy without a mother?
Marcelas Owens, a young boy who’s been appearing on TV and at press conferences with Democrats who are trying to sell their health care plan, is a new fascination for some right-wing pundits, who have been saying …
Buried way back on A17 of the NYT, another reminder of how ugly it is out there:
Arizona on Thursday became the first state to eliminate its Children’s Health Insurance Program when Gov. Jan Brewer signed an austere budget that will leave nearly 47,000 low-income children without coverage.
The Arizona budget is a vivid
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As Jay and I have pointed out, by the time Election Day rolls around, most voters probably won’t care much what procedures or sweetheart deals Democrats employed in their efforts to pass health care reform. Democrats are more likely be judged by the generic measure of whether they were for or against health care. (This is assuming health …
As Michael notes, hypocrisy is a well-established parliamentary procedure:
2010: House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer on the idea of passing health care with a self-executing rule:
The House Democratic leader, Representative Steny H. Hoyer, also defended the maneuver on Tuesday. “It is consistent with the rules,” Mr. Hoyer
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Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines. Here’s a brief guide to the health care final sprint (at least the schedule that we can predict) in the House over the next week:
Monday
3pm
This afternoon the fun will begin with an anticipated Congressional Budget Office score followed by* a House Budget Committee markup of the …
Michael noted earlier that the money is flowing for pro and anti-reform TV ads this week. One more was just released – this time from Moveon.org. The ad flashes pictures of Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, Jr. while a voiceover says voting for health care reform amounts to being “on the right side of history.” Moveon.org, a …
Those are Nancy Pelosi’s words today on why she wants to get health reform done as quickly as possible.
But even among Hill reporters, there’s some confusion over what procedurally will happen this week. Democratic leaders, including Pelosi, are keeping quiet about their precise parliamentary strategy for three reasons. One, if they …
There has been a lot of intrigue on the Hill today about what’s happening in the health reform saga. For those of you dozing off, perk up. Next week is shaping up to be a big one.
* Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid officially informed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, via letter, that Senate Democrats intend to use …
It was an odd scene. There was Karen Ignagni, head of the health insurance lobby, introducing President Obama’s Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. Before the two women shook hands today at the insurance industry’s annual conference at the Ritz-Carlton in Washington DC, Ignagni said to Sebelius, “It is a delight to …
