What exactly is President Obama signing into law?

[deedee77]

First let me say, I usually lurk on forums, not post. I like to read other people’s opinions about stuff. Secondly, I want to apologize for raining on anyone’s parade, but a lot of people are celebrating and I don’t understand why. And since this has been bothering me, I figured I should ask.

As I understand it the Senate passed the Senate Health Care Bill. Then the House passed the House Health Care Bill, which is the Senate bill plus House Amendments. My understanding is that the House passed their bill with one vote. That is they voted on the entire package: Senate Health Care Bill and House Amendments, with one vote. Since the House passed something different (similar, but still different) than what the Senate passed, doesn’t the Senate have to pass the House’s health care bill, before it goes to President Obama?

Am I remembering wrong? Don’t the House and Senate have to agree on everything in the bill, before it goes to the president?

It seems to me, that there are still two Health Care Bills, and if President Obama signs either one ‘into law’ then it will not only be challenged, but there will a very good case that it isn’t law, because it didn’t follow the legislative process.

Am I wrong? Did the House have 2 votes on Sunday? Did the first pass the Senate Health Care Bill, and then pass the House Amendments?

[ingac70]

1. The Senate has to vote on the Amendments. n/t

[no limit]

2. The president is signing the senate bill which the house voted on this Sunday

Once the president signs this senate bill we are all hoping that the senate will then vote on the house amendments through reconciliation. But until that is done we are stuck with the senate bill as the law of the land.

[gkhouston]

3. He's signing the Senate Health Care Bill into law, which has to happen before

the Senate can take up the House's reconciliation stuff. The Senate Dems wrote a letter pinkie-swearing that they would pass the reconciliation bill. Cross your fingers.

[Ian David]

8. It's all in Harry Reid's competent hands now.

Oh, shit.

[northernlights]

4. it is NOT a health CARE bill. Even the administration calls in health INSURANCE reform. nt

[mikelgb]

5. Both the Senate and the House passed the piece of shit senate bill.

Obama is signing that. IMHO he should wait until the sidecar is passed before doing that. Just watch that shit fail. Then we're stuck with worse than shit.

[alcibiades_mystery]

9. Duh

You can't modify a law that doesn't exist. He has to sign the bill that was already passed by the House and Senate before the Senate can take up modifications to it.

[mikelgb]

19. uhm so sign that one first, I'm just saying wait 'til it passes the Senate

so now this shit bill is law and if the Senate finds a way to drop the ball we get stuck with this shit with no "fixes"

[iris27]

6. Yes, there were two votes.

The two bills now are:

1) the Senate bill, passed by both House and Senate and ready for Obama's signature, and
2) the "fix-it" bill, which the House passed with an assurance from Dem. leadership in the Senate that they will do their damnedest to pass as-is, without any change of the language that would require it to go back to the House.

[deedee77]

13. Thanks, this is the info I needed

[alcibiades_mystery]

7. You understand incorrectly

The House passed a bill, called here Bill A.
The Senate passed a bill, called here Bill B.

Because those bills don't match, they would have needed to go to conference, but the Republicans would filibuster anything that comes out of conference, so...

The House voted on Bill B. Since the Senate already voted on it, passing the exact Bill B wouldn't require conference. Bill B is now fully passed, and will go to the President for signature today, at which point it will become the law of the land. BUT,

The House still wanted to add stuff to the reform package, but they can only add stuff that the Senate could pass through reconciliation, otherwise, the GOPers will filibuster. Enter Bill C, the reconciliation bill.

Bill C passed the House on Sunday. The Senate will take up Bill C this week and next, but will only need 50 votes for passage. What will Bill C do?

Bill C will make changes to the law (Bill B being the law). Bill B will be the law even if Bill C doesn't get through the Senate. But Bill C will pass, at which point the law made by Bill B will be modified to reflect the House changes to the Senate bill (Bill B).

As of today, Bill B IS law. It went through the legislative process perfectly (passed the House and Senate).
As of next week some time, that law will be modified to reflect Bill C, which will also have gone through the legislative process perfectly (passed by House and Senate).

[deedee77]

18. Thanks for the info

this is what I needed to know.

[Mari333]

10. this republican health care plan

In fact, the bill that was passed by the House Sunday night was a result of a deal President Obama and the Democrats cut last year with the pharmaceutical industry.

And it was written with the help of former insurance industry lobbyists.

Or as the Washington Post’s E.J. Dionne put it – the Democrats are fighting for a Republican health plan.







http://www.singlepayeraction.org/blog/?p=2421

[DCBob]

11. Wow are you confused... maybe you should stick to lurking..

-- The original Senate bill was passed by House, exactly as it was written. That will be signed into law today.

-- The second bill is a reconciliation bill that modifies/improves the original bill. That will be debated in the Senate this week and probably passed, exactly as written, by this weekend and then signed into law by the President.

-- There is no issue with the legislative process.

[no limit]

12. What's the point of the rudeness on your part? People can't ask questions now?

[DCBob]

14. Because it appears Ms Deedee is intentionally posting bogus information..

If she is only interested in asking questions.. then just ask the questions. No need to interject opposition talking points especially if she is so completely clueless about the process.

[no limit]

15. All I saw was her asking questions, your are the one jumping to conclusions

[deedee77]

16. Actually

I didn't just post the question, because I needed some explanation about what was passed. I didn't know that there were 2 separate votes. In reading articles online and posts on this forum, I didn't see anything saying that there were two votes on Sunday. So I got confused and I asked. Iris and Mystery gave me the explanation that I needed.

[DCBob]

17. Ok. sorry for the rant.. I just get frustrted with so much disinformation being thrown about...

even on this site. Peace.