Tea Partiers Not Giving Up Fight Against Health Reform
"Every idea has been put on the table," he said. "Every argument has been made. Everything there is to say about health care has been said."
Conservative activists would disagree.
FreedomWorks, the organization founded by former House Republican Leader Dick Armey, is pushing conservative activists to a new Web site, NoHealthCareReconciliation.com. Republicans have argued that Democrats are circumventing both public opinion and Senate rules by using reconciliation, which would allow them to get the bill to the president via a simple majority vote, since reconciliation was designed to pass budget-related matters only.
Democrats, meanwhile, are intent on passing health care legislation as quickly as possible. The most seemingly viable plan is for the House to pass the Senate health care bill and for both chambers to pass a "fix it" bill through reconciliation. The reconciliation bill would include provisions put forward by the president, such as establishing federal authority over health insurance rate increases.
The NoHealthCareReconciliation.com site was just launched yesterday, but so far, according to FreedomWorks President Matt Kibbe, more than 10,000 people have signed the petition on the site asking senators "to respect Senate tradition and resist using inappropriate 'reconciliation' rules to pass the health care legislation on narrow partisan lines."
"After the election of Scott Brown and the statements from the president and [House Speaker Nancy] Pelosi, I think the activists thought the deate was over, and we'd start over and have a more rational debate," Kibbe told Hotsheet. "The president and the speaker pushing this again has sort of reignited their passion and frustration in the process. I think you're going to see a tidal wave of opposition."
FreedomWorks was a key player in the town hall protests against the president's health care reform plans, and it is facilitating similar events for the congressional spring recess.
Democrats say they are determined to pass their bill before the recess, which starts March 26, but not all Democrats are on board with the plan. Democratic Reps. Anthony Weiner (N.Y.) and Bart Stupak (Mich.) said on CBSNews.com's "Washington Unplugged" yesterday that the House shouldn't have to pass the Senate bill until the Senate fixes it.
"There's a real reason to believe Pelosi won't get the votes in the House, and we're targeting those members" who could be vulnerable because of the vote, Kibbe said.
FreedomWorks is encouraging conservative activists to organize town hall meetings and invite their congressional representatives to the event, regardless of whether or not they are expected to show up.
"Hiding from your constituents is always a bad idea," Kibbe said.