Thursday, June 20, 2013 | 4:13 a.m.
Hi, (not you?) | Member Center | Sign Out
Posted: 7:24 p.m. Monday, July 9, 2012
By Jamie Dupree
With little suspense, the House on Tuesday is set to begin two days of debate on a Republican bill to repeal the Obama health law, as both parties ran through familiar arguments on the pros and cons of the reforms.
"Everybody knows where we stand on this," said House Rules Committee Chairman Rep David Dreier (R-CA), as he laid out plans for five hours of debate on the House floor over two days on the bill.
Democrats labeled the debate a waste of time, and trumpeted a very clear response from the White House.
"If the President is presented with H.R. 6079," said Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL), "he will veto it."
That veto threat won't have to be used, as Republicans are still well short of the votes they need in the Senate to repeal the health law; GOP leaders hope to change that by winning a majority in November.
Until then, they are again charging that the Obama health law will cause economic troubles for businesses big and small.
"Yes, this is about the economy, this is about jobs," said Rep. Tom Price (R-GA).
But Democrats were also ready with some snappy one-liners, as they sought to exploit what has been seen as a somewhat weak response to the recent Supreme Court decision on the health law by Republican Mitt Romney.
"I think this oughta be called the "RombamaCare," said Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY), stringing together a slightly different version of Romney and Obama from one used in the GOP race for the White House last year.
You might remember Tim Pawlenty labeling it "ObamneyCare" as he attacked the similarities of the Romney plan to the Obama reforms - especially on the subject of the individual mandate, which both share.
Still, both sides were deeply dug in.
"I do recognize that we are talking past each other," said Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX).
Both parties will get to do more of that on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Jamie Dupree is the Radio News Director of the Washington Bureau of the Cox Media Group and writes the Washington Insider blog.
Connect with Jamie Dupree on:TwitterFacebook
Send Jamie Dupree an email.
© 2013 Cox Media Group. By using this website,
you accept the terms of our Visitor Agreement and Privacy Policy, and understand your options regarding Ad Choices
.
Already have an account? Sign In
{* #registrationForm *} {* traditionalRegistration_displayName *} {* traditionalRegistration_emailAddress *} {* traditionalRegistration_password *} {* traditionalRegistration_passwordConfirm *}Already have an account? Sign In
{* #registrationFormBlank *} {* registration_firstName *} {* registration_lastName *} {* traditionalRegistration_displayName *} {* traditionalRegistration_emailAddressBlank *} {* registration_birthday *} {* registration_gender *} {* registration_postalZip *} {* traditionalRegistration_passwordBlank *} {* traditionalRegistration_passwordConfirmBlank *} {* agreeToTerms *}We have sent you a confirmation email. Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account.
We look forward to seeing you frequently. Visit us and sign in to update your profile, receive the latest news and keep up to date with mobile alerts.
Don't worry, it happens. We'll send you a link to create a new password.
{* #forgotPasswordForm *} {* forgotPassword_emailAddress *}We have sent you an email with a link to change your password.
We've sent an email with instructions to create a new password. Your existing password has not been changed.
To sign in you must verify your email address. Fill out the form below and we'll send you an email to verify.
{* #resendVerificationForm *} {* resendVerification_emailAddress *}Check your email for a link to verify your email address.


You're Almost Done!
Select a display name and password
{* #socialRegistrationForm *} {* socialRegistration_displayName *} {* socialRegistration_emailAddress *} {* traditionalRegistration_password *} {* traditionalRegistration_passwordConfirm *}Tell us about yourself
{* registration_firstName *} {* registration_lastName *} {* registration_postalZip *} {* registration_birthday *} {* registration_gender *} {* agreeToTerms *}