Jul 3 2010
Republicans continue their push to win support to repeal the health overhaul, even as parts of the legislation take effect,
The Washington Times reports. "Rep. Steve King, [an] Iowa Republican, is circulating a petition that would force an up-or-down vote in the House of Representatives on repealing the vast bulk of the estimated $940 billion, 10-year legislation the Democratic-controlled Congress passed this spring." It has 80 signatures. "A second House 'discharge' petition to force a vote over the opposition of the Democratic majority, offered by California Republican Rep. Wally Herger, calls for a full repeal and the passage of a substitute GOP plan." The proposals have the support of Republican leadership in the House, including that of House Minority Leader John Boehner and Minority Whip Eric Cantor. "The Republican Study Committee said Thursday at least five other straight repeal bills are in the House, all needing 218 signatures to advance." Outside groups like The Heritage Foundation and Club For Growth are supporting the repeal process (Weber, 7/1).
Politico: In the meantime, an influential conservative commentator, Erick Erickson, says Boehner and Cantor are using the repeal efforts to gain "cover" from angry tea party activists. "Erickson points out that there is a split among House Republicans over the measures — King's would repeal the law as passed by the Senate before the reconciliation process while Herger's would repeal the whole bill while replacing some portions with GOP alternatives — and endorsing both of them effectively solidifies that division, ensuring that the vote won't come up" (Barr, 7/1).
 This article was reprinted from khn.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.
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