GOP Holds Dick as Dems Do Healthcare

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Congressional Republicans finally earned themselves a well-deserved break from their robust efforts in contributing to the national healthcare debate. Until a final bill comes to a pro forma vote in each house, no need for any Republican Congressman or Senator to haul it on to the Senate or House floor to vote no on healthcare bills. No need to employ parliamentary techniques to slow the process to a crawl (reading bills aloud). No need to introduce amendments so far from the intent of the bill as to be pure time-wasters. No need for amendments addressing tort reform to further increase insurance industry profits.

Most importantly, there is no need to vote on and stall the process of conferencing the House and Senate bills to a mutually agreeable piece of legislation. Why, you ask? The Congressional Democrats and the White House have finally had it with GOP crap and cut them out of the Conference Committee reconciliation process. I mean what would a loyal Republican contribute to reconciliation? Saying no and voting no on everything – same as when on the floor – does not contribute to reconciling anything.

The Democrats finally woke up to the realization that bipartisan support for healthcare wasn’t going to happen. Not a single Republican voted in favor of either the House or Senate bill. So, they decided to abandon the time-honored procedure of convening a Conference Committee to reconcile the House and Senate bills. That in itself is a stunning move, virtually unheard of in Congress. The Democrats, controlling both Houses of Congress, figured why not just chat among themselves and with the White House to hammer out a bill palatable to 60 Democrats & Independents in the Senate and 218 Democrats in the House. The leadership and the White House will spearhead the reconciliation and get a bill to President Obama’s desk by February. All done without Republican participation.

Needless to say, Republican heads are spinning. Don’t think any of them saw this coming. With a solid filibuster-proof Senate majority behind a reconciled bill the Republicans are rendered impotent. Their next step will be outside of the legislative branch – suing to declare the bill unconstitutional – the next healthcare frontier for the Party of No.

The Republican Party was welcomed and asked to present its own comprehensive plans. They chose not to, content to simply vote no and spread lies about the Democratic plan (death panels). The naysayers paid the price of their tactics – cut out of the process as irrelevant in bringing healthcare reform to the country.

Bravo to the Democrats.

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