An article that ran in Politico on Friday provided a Rorschach test for those of us following the health care reform debate.
The story was about reform’s prospects following President Obama’s bipartisan meeting. And it dwelt, at length, with the situation in the House. In order to enact reform, as you probably know, the House will have to pass the Senate bill as written, as well as pass amendments that the Senate can consider through the budget reconciliation process. It won’t be easy, the Politico article explained:
“I just don’t know where they get the votes in the House,” said Pennsylvania Rep. Jason Altmire, a Democrat who voted against the initial House bill. “It’s a huge challenge because…the people who voted ‘yes’ would love a second bite at the apple to vote ‘no’ this time because they went home and had an unpleasant experience as a result of their ‘yes’ vote. I don’t know if there is anybody who voted ‘no’ that regrets it.”
That said, Altmire said he’s reconsidering his own “no” vote. And he’s not alone.
The first paragraph certainly seems discouraging. And if you're looking for reasons to be skeptical about reform, well, that paragraph will give you plenty.
(Click here to read more.)