WASHINGTON -- Republicans in Congress are divided over a last-ditch effort to derail the Affordable Care Act (ACA) -- holding all government funding hostage in exchange for defunding the 2010 health law. ...
Backers of the "defunding Obamacare" approach believe this could be their final chance to kill the health law, since few around the country want to see the federal government stop operating. In a largely symbolic move, members of the House voted Friday to prevent the Internal Revenue Service from implementing any part of the ACA -- the 40th time that body has voted to delay or repeal part or all of the law. The Democratic-controlled Senate, however, did not take any similar action.
The speaker has tried to talk Republicans down from the defunding strategy in private meetings, according to published news reports.
Other Republicans have publicly denounced the idea.
"And let's say you do [pass a CR defunding the ACA], and the president vetoes the CR. Then what happens? How fast do members of Congress who voted for that strategy fold when the government shuts down?" Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) told the Washington Post last week. "I've been here when we've done that, and it's not a strategy that works. This is misleading the conservative base because it's not achievable, and all it will do in the long run is dispirit the base. This is a failed strategy for conservatives."
Sen. Richard Burr reportedly called the defunding strategy the "dumbest idea I've ever heard."
Coburn said a majority of the health law is mandatory spending and it would continue whether the rest of the government were funded or not. The Heritage Foundation has criticized this argument, saying that's why conservatives would allow funding for the rest of government only if ACA mandates were actually stripped away.
The defunding effort has mostly been championed by Tea Party Republicans like Texas senator Ted Cruz and conservative action groups like the Heritage Foundation.
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Posted By: Jen Fad
Monday, August 5th 2013 at 4:43PM
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