Congress to Vote by Saturday on Health Care

Do the Dems have the votes to pass Obama's seizure of our health care?

It would seem that many of those who cast a vote in last Thursday's poll may want a do over. 65% of those responding suggested that they thought Obama Care would die a slow lingering death in Congress.

The news on Friday that House Speaker Pelosi intends to bring the measure to a final vote next this coming Friday or Saturday means there may finally be a vote on health care. It may not be the "up or down" vote Obama demands as the House still hasn't made it clear they will vote on the Senate bill, but instead a bizarre rule which pretends the bill has passed so they can amend it with reconciliation.

Also in the works is a plan to lump in the federal takeover of the student loan program. In Facebook post on the coming vote Sarah Palin asks: "Is there any other wildly unpopular legislation they’d also like to sneak in? Perhaps the anti-energy-independence policy “Cap and Tax” (aka Cap and Trade) is next?"

It also appears that Dems will go for the vote without the support of Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) and a deal on abortion. But it looks like the number of "Stupak Democrats" is less than the dozen predicted.

Still, Pelosi is a few votes short of the number required to pass the bill. But don't underestimate the Chicago style promises and threats that will be directed at wavering House Democrats in the coming days.

Scott Brown: "an entire year has gone to waste"

The final days will see an all out push by both sides. On Tuesday, Tea Partiers from the 9/12 March on Washington will gather outside Congressional offices to make their voice heard. The kickoff to the final week began with the Saturday GOP address by Senator Scott Brown, the newly elected REPUBLICAN Senator from Massachusetts:

Scott Brown Delivers GOP Weekly Address
March 13, 2010
Transcript

When the people of my state elected me in January, they sent more than a senator to Washington – they sent a message. Across party lines, the voters told politicians in Washington to get its priorities right.

And from my travels and conversation with people throughout this country, they told me that they want their president and Congress to focus on creating jobs and reviving America's economy. Instead, for more than a year now, we have seen a bitter, destructive and endless drive to completely transform America's healthcare system.
...
Nearly one in 10 Americans are still out of work. And still, the president and Congress are focused on ramming through their healthcare bill, whatever it takes, whatever the cost.

Maybe you remember what President Obama promised in his State of the Union address. He said he was going to finally focus on jobs and the economy for the remainder of this year. I applauded him for that. Well, here it is, it's almost spring. And what is he out there talking about again? That same 2,700-page, multi-trillion dollar healthcare legislation.

So, an entire year has gone to waste. Millions of Americans have lost their jobs, and many more jobs are in danger. Even now, the president still hasn't gotten the message.

Somehow, the greater the public opposition to the healthcare bill, the more determined they seem to force it on us anyway. Their attitude shows Washington at its very worst – the presumption that they know best, and they're going to get their way whether the American people like it or not.
...
Nothing has distracted the attention and energy of the nation’s capital more than this disastrous detour. And, the surest way to return to the people’s business is to listen to the people themselves: We need to drop this whole scheme of federally controlled health care, start over, and work together on real reforms at the state level that will contain costs and won’t leave America trillions of dollars deeper in debt.

This, above all, was the message that the people of my state sent to the President and the Congress in the election over a month ago.

You know some of my Democratic colleagues, you know, are being leaned on mighty hard right now. Speaker Pelosi and others are handing down their marching orders, telling them to vote for this bill no matter what. Rarely have elected leaders been so intent on defying the public will. For many members of Congress, the time for choosing is near – do what the party leadership demands, or do what the people have asked you to do. If my colleagues don’t mind some advice from a newcomer, I’d suggest going with the will of the people.

If your Representative is still on the fence regarding health care, contact him or her NOW and let them know you do not want them to vote for this bill but start over and do this job RIGHT! Unlike the straw men argument Obama is putting out, starting over doesn't mean doing nothing!