NO AMOUNT OF TIME COULD IDENTIFY FLAWS IN OBAMACARE. TO MANY TO COUNT
While the House spotlights the flawed health care law rollout this week, Senate lawmakers are set to clash over confirming two new judges, with Democrats threatening Republicans with a major change that would weaken the filibuster if the GOP votes them down.
And while the Senate Democratic majority has refused to take up legislation altering the new health care law in the wake of a significantly flawed roll out, Republicans who run the House will pass their own bill to tweak the law, and likely with Democratic support.
"For the next several weeks we intend to focus our communications, legislative and oversight activities around Obamacare on the millions of Americans who are having their health insurance policies cancelled and the broken promise that 'if you like what you have, you can keep it,'" House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., outlined in a Nov. 7 memo to the House Republican conference.
The Senate fireworks could start as early as Tuesday, when the Congress returns from Veterans Day to vote on two nominees to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
Nina Pillar, a lawyer, and U.S. District Judge Robert Wilkins are likely to be filibustered, according Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Republicans don't want anymore of President Obama's picks seated on the powerful court and last week blocked Obama pick Patricia Millet to fill a third vacancy.
Republicans argue that the Obama administration is stacking the court in order to expand the president's ability to legislate through the executive branch. The court's caseload, Republicans argue, does not require more judges.
But Democrats argue that there are three vacancies to fill and say Republicans are playing partisan politics, backing down on a deal cut earlier this year in which they promised not to block judicial picks.
If they stand in the way this time, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said, there would be "almost an overwhelming effort to change the rules."
