Obama Can, Should Lock Congress In Until Health Vote

President delivers closing argument to enthusiastic crowd

(AP) - President Obama described the stakes of this weekend's health care vote in stark terms today, using words uttered so rarely out of the White House that they seem all but banned: "If this vote fails." What then? "The insurance industry will continue to run amok," the president declared, pointing to rising rates, denials of coverage and limits on care. More»

Eye constituents' votes in 2008, not polls on health care

(NEWSER) - The upcoming Senate debate on health care reform, like the House vote before it, will be more a referendum on President Obama than a reflection of constituents’ concerns, Andrew Gelman, Nate Silver, and Daniel Lee write. What happened in the House is clear: 31 of 39 Democrats who voted no on the bill come from districts that fell to John McCain last year. Though the Senate calculus is trickier, an analysis reveals that it will likely mirror the lower chamber. More»

The Senate's not all it's cracked up to be

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama may come to regret using House Democrats as “expendable shock troops” in his battle to pass health care reform, writes David Rogers of Politico. Obama has focused on the Senate as his crucible of compromise, but the House—bolstered by a Rules Committee able to test competing reform options—is a better venue for complex, multi-faceted issues like health care. Besides, the Senate ain’t what it used to be. More»

(NEWSER) - President Obama’s failure to get health-care reform on a faster track, despite early legislative victories, is a personal one, Sam Youngman writes in the Hill. “While it is shocking to consider that Obama is anything less than one of the best communicators in modern political history,” Youngman writes, “when it comes to health care, he simply has not been able to make the sell to people who do have health insurance.” More»

Divisions among lawmakers may make reaching goal impossible

(NEWSER) - President Obama has called for the passage of a health care bill by August—but that would require an unusually smooth few weeks on Capitol Hill, Politico reports. The Senate Finance Committee hasn’t released a version of the bill planned for early June; disagreements among Democrats in both chambers have made consensus on that side of the aisle look difficult. If nothing’s done by August, the midterm elections could make passing a measure this year difficult. More»