Cantor, Kyl Rail Against Reconciliation

A pair of leading Republican lawmakers said Wednesday that Democrats are attempting to bend the rules by using reconciliation to try and pass health care reform.

“If the Senate bill was acceptable to most Americans...we wouldn’t even be having a discussion about reconciliation,” said House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.), who added that Democrats are making a “deliberate attempt...to circumvent the rules.”

Cantor suggested that Democrats favor using the quickest means possible to pass healthcare in order to have it finished before the Easter break. Failure to do so, he said, would produce a repeat of what occurred last August, when members who held town-hall meetings were confronted tempestuously by constituents who peppered them with questions over the bill.

“There’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding reconciliation,” said Cantor. “If [the Democrats] ram this bill through the House...they’ll lose their majority.”

Senate Minority Whip John Kyl (R-Ariz.) said the debate over how to pass healthcare has created an even larger wedge between the two parties, and has shoved several other important issues, such as energy, non-proliferation and immigration reform to the back-burner. According to Kyl, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is to blame for imposing a “take-it-or-leave-it” approach on the GOP.

Turning to face Cantor, the number two Republican in the Senate said he understands why House members might be leery of the Senate passing a healthcare bill that meets their wishes. “I can see why House members don’t trust the Senate to go along with this charade.”

In fact, Kyl might have been right. In late January, House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) told Talk Radio News Service that "The House, as you know, has some problems trusting the Senate."

While Kyl admitted that his party’s objective moving forward is to defeat the bill, he refuted the notion that the GOP is simply the ‘party of no’

“We are actually willing to work with [the President],” Kyl said. “We’re in conversations with [Democrats] all the time,” added Cantor.

White House Press Briefing With Robert Gibbs

White House Press Briefing with Press Secretary Robert Gibbs:

POTUS's MEETING WITH GREEK PM GEORGE PAPANDREOU

- Gibbs said that although POTUS will discuss global economic recovery today with the Greek PM, the White House believes Europe should be in charge of solving their crisis. "Europeans possess the power needed to solve their economic problems," Gibbs said.


HEALTHCARE REFORM

- Gibbs said POTUS has not yet made any calls to House Democrats, asking for their vote on healthcare reform. "If calls need to be made...he'll do that," said Gibbs, adding that the President will meet later this week with certain Members. In his speech in Missouri tomorrow the President will address waste, fraud and abuse present within the current healthcare system, according to Gibbs. On why President Obama is making so many speeches on healthcare in cities across the country, Gibbs said it is because POTUS "believes it is important to demonstrate to the American public why reform is important." Gibbs pointed out that the White House considers healthcare reform to be an economic issue. In terms of a vote on healthcare reform, Gibbs reiterated that one could take place before POTUS leaves for Indonesia on March 18, adding that the date arose from discussions White House officials had with lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Gibbs said that as best he knows, the 18th is still the target date to get reform done. When asked to respond to the large protest held today in Washington by supporters of healthcare reform, in which several people were arrested, Gibbs said, "I don't know the public relations value of that." Interestingly, Gibbs was not asked to respond to Rep. Dennis Kucinich's statement that he will not vote for a healthcare bill that doesn't include a public option provision.


ERIC MASSA RESIGNATION

- Gibbs implied that folks should be skeptical of the former Democratic Congressman's allegations that he resigned for political reasons. Gibbs said Massa changed his story on why he was resigning three days in a row, citing health issues, then saying it was possibly due to using what Gibbs described as "salty language" toward a House staffer, then finally saying he was pressured to resign because he opposed healthcare reform. "I wouldn't give any weight to what [Massa] said on the fourth day," said Gibbs. The notion that the White House is behind Massa's resignation is incorrect, said Gibbs. In regards to a possible ethics violation by Massa, Gibbs said POTUS has championed ethics reform since his days as an Illinois State Senator. "This is an issue that the President has taken seriously for a very long time," said Gibbs.


VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN'S TRIP TO ISRAEL

- With regards to Israel's decision to continue building homes in East Jerusalem, Gibbs said the White House "condemns" that decision, and said Vice President Joe Biden, who is currently in Israel, would be releasing an official statement expanding on the White House's position.


KSM

- Gibbs said the Department of Justice is "several or many weeks" away from reaching a decision on where to try 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. Gibbs said President Obama wants to see that "justice is brought" to KSM.


OTHER

- Gibbs said he thinks it is "certainly possible" for a cap-and-trade provision to be included in the climate bill being looked at in the Senate.

- Gibbs said the White House has no confirmation that alleged American-al Qaeda member Adam Gadahn is in the custody of authorities.

- Gibbs said he will address immigration reform in briefings later this week, depending on when POTUS meets with members of Congress to discuss possible legislation.

- Gibbs said that like last year, POTUS will again fill out and release an NCAA Tournament bracket before he leaves for Indonesia on the 18th.

- Gibbs said the President has not yet received his Nobel Prize money. Gibbs said he wasn't sure where exactly the money is at this moment. "I was wondering why Bill [Burton, Gibbs's Deputy Press Secretary] offered to buy me lunch today," Gibbs joked.

Boehner: Health Care Debate Is Far From Over

By Chingyu Wang-Talk Radio News Service

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) stated Thursday that the ongoing debate over health care reform is "far from over," despite indications that Democrats intend to move forward with legislation in the coming weeks.

"This debate is far from over. Republicans are going to continue to stand with the American people against this job killing, massive government takeover of our health care system," said Boehner. "This does not have to become law; They are not there yet."

The Minority Leader also expressed concern over the jobs bill, saying that it was "outrageous" for Democrats to bring the legislation to the floor without proper time for review. He added that he assumes the health care bill might be handled in a similar manner.

The Ohio Democrat also raised the issue of the rising deficit, and charged Obama with not listening to Republican solutions for spending.

"The president has not responded [to the proposal,]" said Boehner. "America is broke. The Democrats' spending binge is mortgaging the future of our kids and grand-kids."

Obama: Congress Owes America A Vote On Healthcare

President Barack Obama said Wednesday that he would like to see an up-or-down vote on his healthcare reform plan happen within the next few weeks.

"I believe the United States Congress owes the American people a final vote on healthcare reform...Reform has already passed the House with a majority. It has already passed the Senate with a supermajority...and now it deserves [an] up-or-down vote," said Obama during a short speech cast by many as being his last major push for reform.

During his remarks, the President never once used the "R" word, but essentially gave the Senate the go-ahead to use reconciliation -- a legislative procedure that would allow them to pass a healthcare bill under a simple majority vote -- if no vote takes place.

Drawing on last Thursday's bipartisan healthcare summit, the President said he liked a few ideas Republicans had, including proposals to address medical malpractice issues and limit wasteful spending within the healthcare system. But he criticized members of the GOP for being on the wrong side of certain fundamental disagreements between his party and theirs.

"There are those, including most Republicans in Congress, who believe the answer is to loosen regulations on the insurance industry. I disagree with that approach...If they truly believe that less regulation would lead to higher quality...then they should vote against the proposal I've put forward."

Looking ahead, it is widely believed that the House has already agreed to pass the Senate's bill, with the understanding that both Houses would subsequently be allowed to make "fixes" to the legislation before it goes to the President's desk.

For all the latest news on healthcare reform, follow @politicalbrief on Twitter.

Senate Decision-Making Policies Should Be Reconsidered In Light Of Bunning Filibuster, Says Hoyer

By Antonia Aguilar-University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) stated Tuesday that the Senate should reconsider its policies governing decision-making policies amid the controversy surrounding Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.), who has been attempting to block passage of a short term unemployment benefits program in the Senate for the past several days.

"I'm certainly hopeful that the Senate will at some point come to grips with the fact that one person ... is holding up the entire United States Senate from acting on that which members on both side of the aisle agree on," Hoyer said. "The Senate has got to come to a place where the Senate has the ability to function."

Hoyer also noted that he remains hopeful that healthcare reform will move forward and will overcome attempts by Republicans to halt its progress.

"There is opportunity to improve the legislation, not scrap it after so much work has been done on it," said Hoyer. "Starting over is a euphemism for not doing it."

Hoyer said in order for undecided House Members to agree to pass the Senate's bill, they need assurance that the bill will work.