For weeks we’ve been hearing that the healthcare reform bill is nearing completion. The legislation passed in the Senate and things have been moving forward at an accelerated rate in the hopes of everything being ready for application by the time of the State of the Union address next month. The bill has faced many obstacles over the course of its journey, but now with completion within reach, another obstacle has surfaced. A Massachusetts election between Republican Senator Scott Brown and Democratic Attorney General Martha Coakley may give Republicans the leg up to kill the bill.
Scott Brown is a staunch and vocal opponent of the bill and would tip the scale to elude democrats of the 60-vote majority.
The democrats, particularly Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi are already planning for the worst. Two possibilities for a fallback plan have already been considered in the event the Democrats lose in Massachusetts. The first would see the Senate calling for the House to push the Senate bill through to President Obama for his signature. The other would require convincing the Senate to agree to changes to its bill as a condition for House passage. Senate Democratic leaders would have no choice but to employ a budget-related procedure to clear the alterations with only 51 votes. The move would infuriate Republicans.
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