It’s Time for Citizen Action to Stop ObamaCare

As we reported last week, there is no Senate health care bill.  For weeks the media have reported on Senate Committee deliberations over “health care reform” or “the health care bill.”  But these reports are misleading.  A genuine bill, written in the legalese of legislation does not yet exist.  Senators have been negotiating over, and amending something called a “conceptual paper.”

Why, after nine months of deliberations has the Senate not produced genuine legislation to vote on? It seems Senate Democrats  learned a lesson from the mistakes of House Democrats.  The House Health Care bill, HR 3200 was posted on the Internet in July.  It spread fear and alarm throughout the land as Internet based analysts, echoed by several media outlets, helped millions of Americans see for themselves the ya wning gap  between the consequences of the actual legislation and President Obama’s extravagant, Utopian promises.

Tens of thousands of people showed up at town halls across the country carrying portions of HR3200 on clipboards as they demanded clear answers to specific questions.  It became obvious from the reactions of stupefied Senators and Congressmen that they had not read legislation they came home to sell, and they could not justify the draconian restrictions on health insurance policies, or the way ObamaCare would use brute force against most Americans.

This week the senate Finance Committee plans vote out its conceptual paper.  The next step is for Majority Leader Harry Reid to merge it with another conceptual paper from another Senate Committee and assign staff lawyers to transform concepts into legislative language, creating a real bill, which then will be brought to the Senate floor for debate.  The merging will be done behind closed doors by Reid, two or three other Senators, and some Senate staffers.  Obviously, this small group of people will have virtually total discretion, to write anything they want into the final bill.  In spite of all the months of deliberations by two committees, the bill that will change the way every American pays for and accesses medical services will be written in a few day by just a few people.

After some period of debate will be “Cloture,” a vote to close debate so Senators can vote yes or no on the bill.  This is the step that requires sixty votes. Without sixty votes debate cannot end and eventually Senate leaders will have no choice but to abandon the effort, and withdraw the legislation from consideration.

It’s often said that sixty votes are required to pass a bill in the Senate, but that’s not completely accurate.  Sometimes Senators will vote yes for Cloture and then vote no on the bill.  This is what Democrat leaders hope to accomplish.  They hope to persuade Senators who will be opposed to the final bill to vote yes on Cloture anyway.  Then they hope to pass the bill, with only 51 votes if necessary, allowing those Senators who represent states where voters oppose ObamaCare to cover their butts by voting no on the final bill.

You can help prevent passage of this government take-over of health care, designed in haste, by a few unqualified politicians and Senate staff, in open defiance of the Constitution.

Call the Senate and demand that the final bill, complete with an estimate of future costs, or “scoring” by the Congressional Budget Office be posted on the internet at least 72 hours before debate begins.  The number is (202) 224-3121.  The operator will connect you with the offices of your state’s Senators.