House GOP poised to restart health law repeal effort; Vote set for Wednesday

Jan 14 2011

Republican leaders in the House have scheduled debate to begin on Tuesday. And, although the vote — which will follow a day later — is largely considered symbolic, it will kick off the GOP push to defund the bill and undo some of its more unpopular provisions.

The Washington Post: House GOP To Resume Health-Care Repeal Effort, But With More Civil Tone 
House Republican leaders said Thursday that they will begin their effort to repeal the new health care law next week, a return to normal legislative business after the shootings in Arizona suspended activity on Capitol Hill (Murray and Kane, 1/14).

The Wall Street Journal: Test Ahead On Rhetoric In House
House Republicans plan to debate and vote next week on repealing last year's health care overhaul in an early test of whether partisan rhetoric softens in the aftermath of the Arizona shootings. … They expect to pass their repeal measure the next day and, later, pass another measure that instructs House committees to delve into new health legislation to replace the law passed last March. The repeal vote will be largely symbolic because the measure lacks the support to pass in the Democrat-controlled Senate and would be vetoed in any case by President Barack Obama. But it kicks off a Republican drive to neuter the law by choking off its funding through the appropriations process and passing legislation to knock down the law's least-popular elements (Adamy, 1/14).

Politico: House GOP Tries To Regain Momentum
Their agenda remains ambitious, aggressive and utterly unchanged, but as House Republicans head back to work after a national pause for mourning, they're trying to recapture their momentum while setting the right political tone. …  Republicans are not changing a lick of substance. They're just talking about it differently. Majority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.), through his spokesman on Thursday, called for the House to "resume thoughtful consideration of the health care bill next week" — a clear signal of the tenor they're seeking for the debate (Sherman, 1/13).

Reuters: House Set To Vote On Healthcare Repeal
The U.S. House of Representatives will resume action next week on repealing President Barack Obama's landmark health care overhaul, a House Republican spokesman said on Thursday. The House had been expected to act this week on the repeal bill, but the vote was postponed after a shooting spree in Arizona killed six people and critically wounded U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords (Smith and Ferraro, 1/13).

The Hill: House GOP To Move Quickly On Healthcare 1099 Tax Repeal
Republicans signaled Wednesday that repealing a controversial tax provision in the health care law is one of their most pressing priorities (Kasperowicz, 1/13).

CNN: House To Resume Health Care Repeal Effort Next Week
After a weeklong pause in legislative business to honor the victims of the Arizona massacre, House Republicans intend to resume regular congressional business next week with a vote to repeal the health care law, a top GOP aide said Thursday (Bash and Walsh, 1/13).

ABC News: House Expected To Resume Health Care Repeal Next Week
After delaying a vote in the House of Representatives to repeal the health care reform law this week in the wake of the shooting in Tucson, Arizona last weekend, a top Republican leadership aide says that the attempt to overturn the controversial law is expected to resume next week (Parkinson, 1/13).