An early gift as Obamas start vacay
December 24, 2009
Christmas comes early for Obama, who left for Hawaii with one fewer priority on his legislative wish list.
Senate Democrats Hold Press Conference on Health-Care Bill
December 24, 2009
SPEAKERS: SEN. HARRY REID (D-NEV.), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER; SEN. RICHARD J. DURBIN (D-ILL.), SENATE MAJORITY WHIP; SEN. CHARLES E. SCHUMER (D-N.Y.), VICE CHAIR, SENATE DEMOCRATIC CONFERENCE SEN. PATTY MURRAY, (D-WASH.), SECRETARY OF THE CONFERENCE, SEN. MAX BAUCUS (D-MONT.), SEN. CHRISTOPHER J. D…
December 24, 2009
SPEAKERS: SEN. HARRY REID (D-NEV.), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER; SEN. RICHARD J. DURBIN (D-ILL.), SENATE MAJORITY WHIP; SEN. CHARLES E. SCHUMER (D-N.Y.), VICE CHAIR, SENATE DEMOCRATIC CONFERENCE SEN. PATTY MURRAY, (D-WASH.), SECRETARY OF THE CONFERENCE, SEN. MAX BAUCUS (D-MONT.), SEN. CHRISTOPHER J. D…
Senate lifts debt ceiling by $290B
December 24, 2009
A $290 billion increase in the federal debt ceiling narrowly cleared Congress.
Comparing the House, Senate health bills
December 24, 2009
A comparison of the health care bills passed by the Senate and House:
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The Senate Democratic bill (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act):
WHO’S COVERED: About 94 percent of legal residents under age 65 — compared with 83 percent now. Government subsidies to help buy coverage start in 2014. Of the remaining 24 million people under age 65 left uninsured, about one-third would be illegal immigrants.
COST: Coverage provisions cost $871 billion over 10 years.
HOW IT’S PAID FOR: Fees on insurance companies, drugmakers, medical device manufacturers. Medicare payroll tax increased to 2.35 percent on income over $200,000 a year for individuals, $250,000 for couples. A 10 percent sales tax on tanning salons, to be paid by the person soaking up the rays.
Senate and House in search of health-care compromise
December 24, 2009
Now that the Senate has passed landmark health-care legislation with a rare Christmas Eve vote, the hardest work of all will begin: reckoning with long-standing differences between the House and Senate versions of reform and uniting behind a single bill that can be sent to the president.
Senate raises debt ceiling to $12.4 trillion
December 24, 2009
The Senate has voted to raise the ceiling on the government debt to $12.4 trillion. That is a $290 billion increase over the current ceiling.
The House approved the increase last week. The Senate’s rare Christmas Eve vote, 60-39, permits the Treasury Department to issue enough bonds to fund the government’s operations and programs until mid-February. The Senate will vote again on the politically tricky issue on Jan. 20.
President Barack Obama must sign the measure into law to prevent a market-rattling, first-ever default on U.S. obligations. The measure is needed after the government piled up a record $1.4 trillion deficit in 2009 to counter a meltdown in financial markets and help bring the nation out of its worst recession in seven decades.
Senate passes health care bill on party line vote
December 24, 2009
Senate Democrats passed a landmark health care bill in a climactic Christmas Eve vote that could define President Barack Obama’s legacy and usher in near-universal medical coverage for the first time in the country’s history.
The 60-39 vote on a cold winter morning capped months of arduous negotiations and 24 days of floor debate. It also followed a succession of failures by past congresses to get to this point. Vice President Joe Biden presided as 58 Democrats and two independents voted “yes.” Republicans unanimously voted “no.”
The tally far exceeded the simple majority required for passage.
Senate Passes Health Care Overhaul on Party-Line Vote
December 24, 2009
The vote clears the way for negotiations with the House, which passed a broadly similar bill last month, bringing Democrats a step closer to a goal they have pursued for decades.