Planned Parenthood/Affordable Care Act

URL: http://www.npr.org/2015/12/02/458127720/senators-move-to-tighten-visa-waiver-program-concede-issues-still-exist


Senate Republicans are expected to achieve two goals on Thursday that have long eluded them — they'll pass a bill that defunds Planned Parenthood and repeals the Affordable Care Act. The House has managed to vote more than 50 times to repeal all or part of the health care law, but it's always been tougher in the Senate, where Republicans don't have the  votes needed to pass bills Democrats oppose. This year, they'll have a special procedure at their disposal to get around that. Let's make it very clear — nothing that happens on the Senate floor this week will ever actually become law, because any bill that repeals the Affordable Care Act and defunds Planned Parenthood is going to get vetoed by the president. So, some might ask, what is the value of this exercise? "The value is to let him know and others that there's a big division in this country, and a lot of us don't like it, and the American people don't like it," said Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama.

"Some Republicans say that maybe by holding these symbolic votes THIS week, they'll satisfy their constituents, and that could ease passage of a government spending bill next week."That's the thing about conservative voters: you don't have to actually do anything for them to fall in line. All you have to do is keep them focused on a woman who wants an abortion or the gay guys kissing and they will support you even as you shake the change from their pockets. I have always liked the "it's both sides that are to blame" position. However, at this point in our history, a segment on the right has "gone off the rails". If you follow the problems facing our current legislators

This is valuable information to what we are learning in class right now because we are learning about the House and the Senate. More importantly how they get bills to the floor and how this process goes.