President Obama says time for debating health reform is over it's time to vote
By: Import User
Updated: March 3, 2010
President Obama says time for debating health reform is over it's time to vote.
And if republicans won't get on board, democrats are threatening to use a controversial technique to get it done.
You're going to hear this term a lot in coming weeks: "reconciliation."
Democrats call it simple majority.
Bottom line: it's a procedure the president's party now intends to use, to break the stalemate.
In Washington, no one's budging on health reform.
"It is time to listen to the people and to start over," said republican Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
"No matter how hard we tried, no matter how hard the president tried, republicans just weren't serious," said democratic Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey.
So President Obama says "game over" and tells democrats to schedule a vote in the next few weeks whether republicans agree or not.
"I don't know how this plays politically, but I know it's right," the President said.
What republicans want is to start over. Not an option, said the President.
"For us to start over now could simply lead to delay that could last for another decade, or even more. The American people, the U.S. economy, just can't wait that long," Obama said.
Democrats plan to use a procedure called "reconciliation" to force a vote with the support of just 51 senators instead of 60.
"The American people are entitled to an up or down vote and that's what they're gonna get," said Chairman of the Democratic Committee Tim Kaine.
Republicans counter, they've been left out.
"All behind closed doors, not on the floor of the Senate. And that's regrettable," said republican Senator Olympia Snowe of Maine.
And they claim the few republican ideas President Obama added to his plan, like curbing fraud and cracking down on malpractice suits,
don't compensate for its massive cost.
"It just doesn't work because the bill is so bad," said republican Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire.
Good or bad... Soon, it may be done.


