Are These Bastards Trying to Vote on This Tonight?
Answer: No, But They Are Aiming For Christmas Eve

Drew just asked why the Senate had adjourned until 1 a.m. One a.m.

Here's the explanation, offered by Rosley:

They are meeting at midnight to start the clock on cloture for the defense spending bill. That has to be passed before they adjourn, too. They want it out of the way before they get to Obamacare.

Also have to pass the bill raising the US debt limit (which we've exceeded, anyway).

So they're clearing that stuff out so they can vote on this later in the week.

At Hot Air, discussing the very-much expedited schedule we're on...

Because Republicans like McConnell and DeMint are promising to delay by every possible means (even Olympia Snowe wants to slow down, believe it or not), the only way to get the bill to the floor by Christmas Eve is to schedule votes at the first possible moment under Senate rules — which means they could be voting on amendments at 3 a.m. this week. That’s how desperate the most transparent administration ever is to get this done before the next round of polls freaks out even more centrists.

I'm guessing that's in response to this...

Republicans may force Senate clerks to read the entire manager’s amendment but that will not disrupt the schedule. That’s because reading the amendment, which will be shorter than the 2,074-page healthcare bill, is not expected to take more than eight hours.

Reid could offer the manager’s amendment on Saturday morning and keep to his schedule as long as he files cloture sometime before midnight.

Cloture motions need one day to ripen, so the earliest the Senate could vote to end debate on Reid’s manager’s amendment would be 1 a.m. Monday.

These bastards are determined to get this done by...Christmas Eve.

This bill, again, is not even written yet.

Earlier I linked Sen. McConnell raging against this bill. JackM. pointed out he was citing one of the Maine sisters as a reason for delay:

“This isn’t an energy bill. This is an attempt by a majority to take over one sixth of the U.S. economy — to vastly expand the reach and the role of government into the health care decisions of every single American — and they want to be done after one substantive amendment. This is absolutely inexcusable.

“I think Senator Snowe put it best on Tuesday:

‘Given the enormity and complexity,’ she said, ‘I don’t see anything magical about the Christmas deadline if this bill is going to become law in 2014.’

“And I think Senator Snowe’s comments on a lack of bipartisanship at the outset of this debate are also right on point.

“Here’s what she said in late November:

‘I am truly disappointed we are commencing our historic debate on one of the most significant and pressing domestic issues of our time with a process that has forestalled our ability to arrive at broader agreement on some of the most crucial elements of health care reform. The bottom line is, the most consequential health care legislation in the history of our country and the reordering of $33 trillion in health care spending over the coming decade shouldn’t be determined by one vote-margin strategies – surely we can and must do better.’

“The only conceivable justification for rushing this bill is the overwhelming opposition of the American people. Democrats know that the longer Americans see this bill the less they like it. Here’s the latest from Pew. It came out just yesterday.

“A majority (58 percent) of those who have heard a lot about the bills oppose them while only 32 percent favor them.”

“There is no justification for this blind rush — except a political one, and that’s not good enough for the American people.

“And there’s no justification for forcing the Senate to vote on a bill none of us has seen.

“Americans already oppose this bill. The process is just as bad.

“It’s completely reckless, completely irresponsible.”

Catch that? We must rush, rush, rush to pass a bill, without even reading it, so that the bill can take effect in 2014.

Yeah that makes sense.

posted by Ace at 06:49 PM

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