by Congressional Quarterly

ongressional leaders say they welcome President Obama’s idea for a health care summit — but it is far from clear that more talking will deliver Republican votes for any bill that Democrats rewrite. “Senate Democrats join with the president in reaffirming our commitment to seeking a bipartisan solution to health reform,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid , D-Nev. “We have promoted the pursuit of a bipartisan approach to health reform from day one.” House GOP Leader John A. Boehner of Ohio said he, too, was looking forward to the summit. But in a statement, he launched another attack on Democrats’ current plans. “Obviously, I am pleased that the White House finally seems interested in a real, bipartisan conversation on health care,” he said. “The problem with the Democrats’ health care bills is not that the American people don’t understand them; the American people do understand them, and they don’t like them.” Congressional Republicans have largely resisted the Democratic effort to write health care legislation. Only one Republican member voted for the House bill when it passed in November. No Republicans voted for the Senate bill during procedural motions or on final passage. Obama’s call for a summit makes it less likely that a compromise will be struck before March. Democrats have been struggling to find a way to move the Senate-passed bill through the House, along with a package of yet-to-be-determined compromises that would guarantee that House Democrats would support the effort. Negotiators have been working quietly behind the scenes, but for the time being are saying little publicly about the effort while they focus on jobs legislation. Obama on Sunday proposed holding a bipartisan, bicameral health care summit on Feb. 25. In an interview on CBS during the Super Bowl pre-game show, the president said he hoped to review proposals in Senate- and House-passed health plans, as well as those offered by GOP critics. “I want to ask them to put their ideas on the table, and then after the recess, which will be a few weeks away, I want to come back and have a large meeting, the Republicans and Democrats, to go through systematically all the best ideas that are out there and move it forward,” Obama said.

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   by Congressional Quarterly

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) used an address to the Democratic National Committee’s winter conference on Friday to try to energize party loyalists and encourage them to “get the word out” about Democrats’ accomplishments so far. Pelosi told conference attendees “to make sure the American people know that the Democratic Party knows them.” The Speaker used the forum to talk up what Democrats have done in the past year to try to stem joblessness and reverse the economic downturn, including last year’s $787 billion stimulus. She reiterated that jobs and the economy remain a central focus on Capitol Hill. “Democrats are leading the fight for Main Street,” Pelosi said. “Never again will Wall Street’s recklessness undermine Main Street’s progress. Never again will Wall Street be allowed to jeopardize the jobs, the pensions, the homes, and the life savings of the American people.” Pelosi’s remarks came as the latest jobs report revealed the nation’s unemployment figure now stands at 9.7 percent, a slight improvement from last month’s 10 percent. But the report also revealed a loss of 22,000 jobs nationwide, which Pelosi said was “too much.” It also comes at the beginning of an election year in which Democratic majorities in the House and Senate are under siege. Pelosi issued a call to the party faithful to “get the word out” on the Democrats’ accomplishments so far, although she didn’t mention the November elections in particular. “Recognize your role in this. We can do all the inside maneuvering but without your participation, nothing great or good can happen,” she said. The morning address was not without its jabs to Republicans. “Anyone who wants to know the difference between Democrats and Republicans need only look at their budgets,” Pelosi said. “President Obama’s provides a new foundation for economic growth.” “The Republican budget provides tax breaks for the wealthy, ends Medicare as we know it and privatizes Social Security. Here they go again,” she said. Midway through her 25-minute address, the Speaker touched on what was once the party’s main legislative focus: health care reform. While House and Senate leaders are still struggling over how to pass a bill, Pelosi assured the crowd that “central to our fight is the fight to reform health insurance for the American people.” “This is about the economic security of America’s families,” Pelosi told the crowd to much applause. “The bill is about jobs, creating 4 million good paying jobs in the life of the bill.”

Senate Democrats Plan to Move Jobs Bill to the Floor Next Week

February 4, 2009

   by Congressional Quarterly

Senate Democratic leaders said Thursday they will try to move jobs-focused legislation to the floor next week that would likely include business tax breaks and the extension of numerous economic stimulus measures that are set to expire. Among the measures being eyed for the package are a new tax credit for business hiring, short-term extensions of federal unemployment insurance and COBRA health insurance subsidies for the unemployed, and an extension of the surface transportation authorization. Extensions of economic stimulus programs that give small businesses liberalized expensing rules and state and local governments assistance through a tax credit bond program also are in the mix. Majority Leader Harry Reid , D-Nev., said he would like to see an initial vote on a jobs package on Feb. 8 — likely a procedural vote — and Senate passage before members leave town for the Presidents Day recess on Feb. 12. But that depends on Republican cooperation, since Democrats will lose their filibuster-proof 60 votes later today when Republican Scott P. Brown is sworn in to fill out the term of the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy , D-Mass. The move comes as Democrats face renewed pressure to address the still-struggling economy after their top agenda item, an overhaul of the health care system, was sidelined. Reid’s top lieutenant, Majority Whip Richard J. Durbin , D-Ill., challenged Republicans to agree to the move the initial package quickly. “This is a good faith offering on the Democratic side,” Durbin said. “Let’s put these on the floor and move them with a sense of urgency.” Whether Republicans will allow that to happen remains unclear, and no legislative language has been unveiled yet. Republican tax writers want assurances that separate House-passed estate tax legislation will be brought up in the Senate in a timely fashion, and that the tax provisions aimed at stimulating the economy will be kept separate from spending provisions being advocated by Democratic leaders.

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