Posted on 03/11/2010 12:00:31 PM PST by Daisyjane69
Edited on 03/11/2010 1:04:25 PM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]
The Senate Parliamentarian has ruled that President Barack Obama must sign Congress’ original health care reform bill before the Senate can act on a companion reconciliation package, senior GOP sources said Thursday.
The Senate Parliamentarian’s Office was responding to questions posed by the Republican leadership. The answers were provided verbally, sources said.
House Democratic leaders have been searching for a way to ensure that any move they make to approve the Senate-passed $871 billion health care reform bill is followed by Senate action on a reconciliation package of adjustments to the original bill. One idea is to have the House and Senate act on reconciliation prior to House action on the Senate’s original health care bill.
Information Republicans say they have received from the Senate Parliamentarian’s Office eliminates that option. House Democratic leaders last week began looking at crafting a legislative rule that would allow the House to approve the Senate health care bill, but not forward it to Obama for his signature until the Senate clears the reconciliation package.
Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) moved Thursday to put Senate Republicans on the defensive over health care, sending a letter to Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) in which he dared the GOP to vote against reform.
Reid also defended the Democrats’ use of reconciliation to get a final health care reform bill to the president’s desk, noting that the bulk of health care reform was approved under regular order via the package that cleared the Senate on Christmas Eve. Reid also emphasized that Republicans have used the procedure several times over the years.
However, Reid also promised in the letter that Republicans would have ample opportunity to amend the reconciliation package.
“Reconciliation is designed to deal with budget-related matters, and some have expressed doubt that it could be used for comprehensive health care reform that includes many policies with no budget implications. But the reconciliation bill now under consideration would not be the vehicle for comprehensive reform — that bill already passed outside of reconciliation with 60 votes,” Reid wrote to McConnell.
“Reconciliation will not exclude Republicans from the legislative process. You will continue to have an opportunity to offer amendments and change the shape of the legislation. In addition, at the end of the process, the bill can pass only if it wins a democratic, up-or-down majority vote. If Republicans want to vote against a bill that reduces health care costs, fills the prescription drug ‘donut hole’ for seniors and reduces the deficit, you will have every right to do so,” he said.
The Senate Parlimentarian would be advised not to take any showers on Capitol Hill.
The socialist thugs will only get more desperate from here on out. Be careful and buy more ammo.
There's a bill that does that?
You beat the flashing light on Drudge! Congrats!
Is this guy under investigation yet?
Biden can (and will) overrule the Senate Parlimentarian
So does that mean the Slaughter Solution is a no-go?
The Parliamentarian of the United States Senate is the official advisor to the United States Senate on the interpretation of Standing Rules of the United States Senate and parliamentary procedure.
As the Presiding Officer of the Senate may not be fully aware of the parliamentary situation currently facing the Senate, staff from the Senate Parliamentarian’s office sit on the Senate dais to advise the Presiding Officer on how to respond to inquiries and motions from Senators. The role of the parliamentary staff is strictly advisory; the Presiding Officer is in no way required to follow their advice, though they almost always do so. The office also refers bills to the appropriate committees on behalf of the Senate’s Presiding Officer. If facing the dais, the Parliamentarian is the second from the left.
The current parliamentarian is Alan Frumin, who succeeded Robert Dove, who was Parliamentarian in the mid-to-late 1990s. Frumin also preceded him in the late-1980s as Parliamentarian, insofar as they switched positions as the Parliamentarian and the second most senior parliamentarian due to changes in partisan control over the Senate. The first female assistant parliamentarian of the United States Senate was Gail M. Cowper in the early 1980s.
There are also two Senior Assistant Parliamentarians: Elizabeth MacDonough and Peter Robinson, and one Assistant Parliamentarian: Leigh Hildebrand. They also have a Parliamentary Assistant: Melissa Carmichael.
He should be very watchful for buses also!
B U M P !!!
I think this puts the HOuse in a position they don’t want to be in. If they pass it, then the senate has to do a whole new bill to fund it and fix it and that might be hard.
I wonder,,will they pass it any way.
Why would they bother with a reconciliation bill if the Senate bill is already signed?
I forgot that,,Biden will overrule him. It has been done in the past or at least I read that somewhere.
Why do I have the feeling that this changes nothing.
Well once he signs it, it’s law.
Why would there then be a ‘reconciliation’???
There wouldn’t.
Anything to derail the communist takeover of America.
A minor bump........................
Big deal. That has been the plan all along.
There has been a FReeper who has been making this point ad nauseum on many, many threads — I apologize to him, I do not recall his name to attribute, but I did wish to make note of it.
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