Obama Delays Asia Trip as Dems Wrangle Health Care Votes

noreply@blogger.com (RCoffield@fsblaw.com)

Sources Say ‘Dramatic’ Developments in Late Negotiations but Vote Count Unclear
By JAKE TAPPER
WASHINGTON, March 12, 2010—
Speaking volumes about how Democrats lack the votes to pass health care overhaul legislation, President Obama has decided to delay next week’s trip to Indonesia and Australia.
The president was due to leave Thursday, which is the deadline that the White House gave Congress to finish negotiations and pass a bill.
But the White House has confirmed that Obama will leave three days later on Sunday, March 21, and without his wife and daughters as originally planned.
White House officials and congressional Democratic sources expressed confidence that the compromise House-Senate legislation will ultimately pass, but as of now, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., does not have the votes.
“We’ll take whatever time is required forus to pass the legislation,” Pelosi told reporters today.
She needs 216 votes — a majority of the House’s 431 members — to pass the Senate bill and changes to it. Anti-abortion Democrats, led by Rep. Bart Stupak, D- Mich., have said they will not support the Senate bill because it has less restrictive language on abortion than the House bill.
Democratic congressional leaders had asked the president to delay his trip until after the health care […]

Read more this great post here