GOP in a bind over healthcare repeal vote
House Republican leaders are eager to fulfill their promise to vote to
repeal the legislation, but taking up the divisive issue could hurt the party at
a time of calls for rejecting partisan rhetoric.
By Kathleen Hennessey, Washington Bureau
8:12 PM PST, January 12, 2011 - Los Angeles Times
As lawmakers promise a new era of comity after the Arizona shooting attack
that left six dead and Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) in critical condition,
Republican leaders grappled with how and when to return to an issue that brought
political discourse to a boiling point.
A House vote to repeal the
healthcare law, put on hold after Saturday's shooting of 19 people in Tucson,
presents Republicans with an unexpected challenge.
If they move too
quickly, GOP leaders risk appearing tone deaf to pleas to reject overheated
rhetoric — the leading of example of which is the healthcare debate last
year.
But if they delay the vote much longer, they could infuriate their
most conservative supporters and "tea party" activists.
GOP leaders have
avoided discussing the timing of any votes, although the House is expected to
resume some of its business next week. Meanwhile, they've taken a softer tone
and emphasized calls for unity.
"Regardless of what legislation is
considered next week, we hope all members remain focused on substantive policy
differences," said Laena Fallon, a spokeswoman for House Majority Leader Eric
Cantor (R-Va.). Fallon added that Cantor believed that "this institution has an
obligation to move forward doing the business of the people at the appropriate
time."
GOP officials could announce a decision Thursday on when that will
be. Republicans must be mindful of the national mood and they also must be aware
that, for some, the clock is ticking.
"This is not the serious
getting-down-to-business in Congress that people voted for," said Andrew Ian
Dodge, a tea party leader in Maine who said he had heard from other activists
frustrated by the delay on the vote. "I think it's a mistake. It shows a sort of
lack of spine and will and it's disappointing."
On Capitol Hill, the
discussion fell along party lines.
"I think we should proceed as fast as
we can and faster if possible," said Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington
Beach).
Rep. Robert E. Andrews (D-N.J.) called that approach a mistake.
"I think good judgment would say, let's extend this period of healing before the
House returns to something as divisive as healthcare," he
said.
Republican leaders sought to encourage healing this week, putting
all legislative business on hold as lawmakers received security
briefings.
On Wednesday, when the repeal vote was supposed to have been
held, lawmakers instead paid tribute to Giffords and Gabriel Zimmerman, an aide
killed in the shooting. House Speaker John A. Boehner (R- Ohio) asked for
bipartisanship.
"We know that we gather here without distinction of
party," Boehner said in a brief floor speech in which he dabbed his eyes with
his handkerchief. "The needs of this institution have always risen above
partisanship."
Still, the business of politics continued quietly.
Republicans planned to meet for an annual closed-door retreat starting
Thursday.
Repeal of the healthcare law has been a cornerstone of the
Republican agenda since the legislation passed last March. Although repeal is
not expected to win Senate approval — and would be vetoed by President Obama if
it did — lawmakers promised to make the vote the first act of the new GOP-led
House.
For others, passage of the healthcare overhaul still evokes images
of political rancor, with GOP congressmen cheering on protesters outside the
Capitol, and a black Democratic lawmaker saying healthcare opponents swore at
him and made racially charged remarks. Physical threats against lawmakers
increased.
"I think we all have a little bit of PTSD about the last
healthcare debate," said Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), using the acronym for
post-traumatic stress disorder. Both sides agreed that the tone of any future
debate should be less inflammatory.
But the difference between
inflammatory and passionate argument remained in dispute — a sign that a new
healthcare debate could resemble the last one.
In an interview Tuesday,
Rep. John Garamendi (D-Walnut Creek) stood by his assertion that repealing the
law would lead to "more Americans dying."
"Those are the facts. That
speaks directly to the bill without speaking to individuals," Garamendi
said.
Rep. Ted Poe (R- Texas), who has described the healthcare law as
totalitarian, reiterated that characterization. "The health reform bill is
totalitarian," he said. "It's the government telling people what they can and
can't do about their healthcare. I stand by the comment; I would make it
again."
khennessey@tribune.com
Times
staff writer Richard Simon in Washington contributed to this
report.
Copyright © 2011, Los Angeles Times