Don't Believe Them - "Deem and Pass" Is NOT "Without a Vote"

[babylonsister]

"Deem and Pass" Is NOT "Without a Vote"

Tuesday 16 March 2010

by: Bill Scher | The Campaign for America's Future

Several traditional media outlets are regurgitating the conservative spin that if the House uses the parliamentary procedure known as a "self-executing rule" or "deem and pass," it will be passing the Senate health care vote "without a vote."

Yet that is a false assertion.

MSNBC's First Read succinctly explains the process, in case any other professional journalists care to do their jobs.

...the health-care bill would be voted on INDIRECTLY, tucked into what's known as "the rule." The rule essentially outlines the rules for an upcoming vote -- in this case, it would be the vote on the package of reconciliation fixes. By passing "the rule," the House also would "deem" the Senate bill passed (with a "hereby" statement. "We hereby deem..."). The House would then vote on the package of reconciliation fixes. But the Senate health-care bill would be considered passed even if they never vote on the reconciliation fixes {and} the bill must be signed by the president before the Senate takes up the reconciliation.

So there is a vote by the full House on whether it chooses to pass the Senate health care bill.

If any members of the House do not want to deem the Senate bill passed, they can vote "No" on the rule which would deem it passed.

Any members of the House who vote "Yes," would do so by recorded vote, so their constituents will be able to judge their actions.

Kinda sounds like democracy.

more...

http://www.truthout.org/deem-and-pass-is-not-without-a-vote57734

[Kber]

1. But isn't just copying talking points easier

I mean, the weather's great and I've got a golf game to get started. If I have to look up the rules associated with "Deem and Pass", I might delay my game by what, 20 - 30 minutes?

:sarcasm:

[babylonsister]

3. Or, complaining about anything and everything whether it makes

sense or not is so much easier, and who cares if anyone realizes what morons they look like? :shrug:

[Cha]

2. KickR

[DrToast]

4. It's too late. It's already taken hold

I was watching the news at lunch and every channel was talking about how the Dems might pass health care without a vote and how unusual it was!

[backscatter712]

5. BINGO! They're effectively voting on both bills with one vote.

They're also adding language, in the self-executing rule, that states that the Senate bill will not pass without the reconciliation bill.

Remember last week we were freaking out about how the House was getting suckered into passing the Senate Bill, but the Senate would pull a Lucy, yank the football away, and kill the reconciliation sidecar?

This is how Pelosi is keeping Lucy from yanking away the football.

It's obviously a good thing, because the GOP's howling loudly over it, as are their moles here on DU.