Sometimes I just want to hit Dems like Baucus with a sockful of nickels...
Two Senate Republicans negotiating on health care reform say a bipartisan deal is out of reach before the August recess.
I had a feeling they would pull this. I think Baucus got played for a fool. Unfortunately, I think it could kill reform.
link
(CNN) — Two of the three Senate Republicans negotiating a bipartisan deal on health care reform said they consider an agreement out of reach before the Senate goes on its August recess.
That likely dashes the hopes of Democratic leaders and President Barack Obama for a deal among the so-called Gang of Six negotiators that could deliver critical momentum for the stalled health care overhaul.
Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, and Sen. Michael Enzi, R-Wyoming, dropped the bombshell news to CNN and two other reporters in Capitol hallways Wednesday night. They have spent weeks behind closed doors, trying to hammer out an agreement with their Democratic counterparts on the Senate Finance Committee but said too many issues remain unresolved, making it virtually impossible for them to sign on to a deal before the break.
Somehow I think this still won't teach Baucus a lesson.
Tomorrow, they need to move forward on a partisan deal or I say that Harry Reid should be thrown out over the recess.
I don't support the SFC bill, but I think that its death could really hurt momentum for HCR. And that would be a bad thing going into August.
The good news is that Olympia Snowe has not yet signalled that she agrees with Grassley and Enzi. Maybe now we can say fuck em and get a more liberal bill done.
Another thing is, I don't know if you guys who are pushing reconciliation realize it, but reconciliation would mean that reform will only last for 10 fiscal years. If you ever wondered why the Bush tax cuts only lasted 10 years, well, that's why.
UPDATE: Baucus could be close to losing his chairmanship:
In an apparent warning to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.), some liberal Democrats have suggested a secret-ballot vote every two years on whether or not to strip committee chairmen of their gavels.
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"Every two years the caucus could have a secret ballot on whether a chairman should continue, yes or no," said Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), the chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee. "If the ‘no’s win, [the chairman’s] out.
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Some senators suggest privately that Baucus might be more open to persuasion if his chairmanship is subject to regular votes.
Another senior Democratic senator endorsed Harkin’s suggestion but declined to speak on the record for fear of angering Baucus.
"Put me down as a yes, but if you use my name I’ll send a SWAT team after you," said the lawmaker when asked about a biennial referendum on chairmen.