–Senate Dems Kill GOP Amendments, But Two Provisions Must Be Removed
–Senate Parliamentarian Says Pell Grant Provisions Must Be Striken
–Senate To Resume at 9:45 AM; Final Vote About 2 PM ET
By John Shaw
WASHINGTON (MNI) – In more than eight hours of voting Wednesday
night and early Thursday morning, Senate Democrats defeated more than
two dozen Republican amendments to the final health care bill.
But a ruling by the Senate parliamentarian will strike two
education provisions from the package, thus requiring the House to
revote on the bill.
House Democratic leaders have said all week that any House revote
would take place immediately and predicted the bill would pass the
House again if the changes were minor.
The Senate adjourned at about 2:45 a.m. Thursday and will reconvene
at 9:45 a.m for a new round of votes on amendments.
Senate Democrats have defeated 29 Republican amendments, saying
they were designed to force the House to revote on the bill.
That revote in the House will occur, Senate Democratic leaders
said, because two provisions of the bill related to Pell grants violate
the technical rules of reconciliation legislation.
This appears to be a minor snag, but one that Democrats in both
chambers had hoped to avoid.
The reconciliation bill makes a number of adjustments to the
comprehensive health care bill that President Obama signed Tuesday.
If the Senate had passed the reconciliation bill without any
changes, it would have gone to Obama for his signature.
But now that the legislation will be modified slightly, it must be
sent back to the House for its consideration.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer has said that if the
reconciliation bill, which the House approved Sunday was changed by the
Senate, the House would vote on the amended bill this week.
The House approved the reconciliation bill Sunday on a 220 to 211
vote.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **
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