Here’s the bottom line: For health reform to become law, the 2,700-page Senate bill somehow has to get through the House.
The trickery that Speaker Pelosi is concocting to get that done almost defies belief. It’s aptly called the “Slaughter Strategy,” after Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-NY, who cooked it up.
Here’s how it would work: The House would “deem” the main Senate bill to have passed without directly voting on it as long as the House approves a companion bill of amendments to the Senate bill.
Got it? The original bill and the bill of fixes would be tied together on final passage. Enough House members hate provisions in the Senate bill that Pelosi can’t round up 216 votes to pass the Senate bill alone.
The Slaughter Strategy (more likely describing what would happen to House members in November if they try this) would allow House members to say they never voted for the Senate bill, just the amendments to fix it.
Former Speaker Newt Gingrich had the best line: Last year, the House was passing bills without reading them. This year, they’re passing bills without voting on them.
How is this possibly even remotely constitutional?
‘Grace-Marie Turner is with the Galen Institute.’