Obamacare Repeal Vote Tests Democrats’ Strength

The House is scheduled to vote on a repeal of the new healthcare law Wednesday, providing the first big test of how much power Democrats can assert in their newfound minority position. Republicans have forbidden open amendments to the bill, giving Democrats only a single chance to propose a “motion to recommit” as an alternative to the bill, The Hill reports.

“When Democrats ran the House, the GOP made aggressive use of the last-chance motions to stymie the majority, repeatedly inserting language related to pornography and other politically delicate subjects that forced Democrats either to pull legislation from the floor or to take risky votes,” the news service states.

“Democrats complained loudly about the tactics, accusing Republicans of offering irrelevant poison-pill amendments and playing political games with serious and occasionally bipartisan legislation. The question is: Now that the party roles are reversed, will Democrats do the same?”