WASHINGTON - Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Tex., who is leading Senate GOP efforts to defund ObamaCare, apparently is no longer courting the vote of Louisiana Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu. That became apparent Tuesday afternoon, as the freshman Tea Party favorite began a marathon speech on the Affordable Care Act, referring to the Louisiana Purchase, the derogatory term used to describe...
WASHINGTON - Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Tex., who is leading Senate GOP efforts to defund ObamaCare, apparently is no longer courting the vote of Louisiana Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu.
That became apparent Tuesday afternoon, as the freshman Tea Party favorite began a marathon speech on the Affordable Care Act, referring to the Louisiana Purchase, the derogatory term used to describe Landrieu's negotiations that won approval of a fix for the state's Medicaid funding shortfall to help gain her vote.
In his talk, Cruz referred to the Louisiana Purchase as "one of the sorry aspects" of the frantic efforts to pass the health overhaul law, which every GOP lawmaker opposed. He did not name Landrieu by name, but it was clear she was the target of his remarks.
During the time he discussed the Louisiana Purchase, Cruz was on the floor with Sen. David Vitter, R-La. He said itter "was not involved in that."
Still, as controversial as the federal fix of Louisiana's Federal Medical Assistance Percentage was in Washington, it was urgently requested in Louisiana by, among others, Gov. Bobby Jindal, who worried the formula would unfairly cut the state's Medicaid funding because of the way it accounted for changes in incomes resulting from worker shortages after Hurricane Katrina.
On Sunday, Cruz mentioned Landrieu and Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., as two senators from red states, who are up for re-election next year in states where the health care law is unpopular and who might consider joining Republicans in voting to defund it.
Landrieu has vowed to oppose a defunding measure.
"I just think we need to keep the government operating," Landrieu said Friday. "It will be very damaging to the economy, to jobs in Louisiana, should the Tea Party push us off the cliff because of their relentless, senseless and reckless push to repeal a law that has been passed, and held up by the Supreme Court, and is being implemented in majority states in America."
Cruz vowed Tuesday "to speak against ObamaCare until I am no longer able to stand." But his efforts technically don't amount to a filibuster because he is hopeless to stop the Senate from voting Wednesday afternoon on a motion to proceed with debate on a House-passed spending bill that defunds ObamaCare.
Democrats plan to remove the defunding provision, and enough Republicans seem unwilling to risk a government shutdown to force the issue that Cruz' efforts to block ObamaCare funding in the Democratic-led Senate are likely to fail.
That would leave it up to the Republican-led House to decide whether to along with the likely change by the Democratic-led Senate, or hold its ground, causing a partial government shutdown on Oct. 1.
In his remarks, Cruz criticized some Senate Democrats for threating to embarrass Vitter if he persisted in his efforts to eliminate federal health care subsidies for members of Congress and their staffs who, as a result of a 2010 GOP amendment to the health law, must buy their coverage from exchanges being created by the law to help the uninsured obtain insurance. Some Democrats threatened to bring up an amendment that would have barred federal health insurance subsides for any member linked to prostitution - a measure aimed at Vitter.
Democrats never offered the amendment, or another under consideration. But they also didn't permit a vote on Vitter's amendment, which he wanted to add to an energy efficiency bill.
""We all know the old saying that 'politics ain't bean bag,' but the nastiness with which the Democratic majority responded to Sen. Vitter for daring to say that the Washington ruling class should be subject to the same rules as the rest of us, was extraordinary for Washington D.C," Cruz said.
Vitter said he would attempt to offer his amendment again, as part of the debate on the spending resolution.
Democrats maintain the Vitter amendment would not, as he insists, bring Congress to the same requirements of the public, when it comes to the Affordable Care Act, but would treat its members and staff worse by denying employer health subsidies that continue for most workers at government agencies and at large companies.
In addition to striking the defunding clause from the House-passed spending bill, Senate Democrats plan to shorten the duration of the measure - from Dec. 15 to Nov. 15 -- to give Congress a chance to adopt spending levels to meet current needs instead of relying on old funding formulas included in the House-passed spending bill does.
"There are a number of Senate Republicans who recognize the Tea Party agenda is wrong for the country, wrong for their party, so I hope that these reasonable Republicans will prevail upon their colleagues in the next few days so that we do not have to shut down the government," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.
During his long speech, Cruz referred to the Affordable Care Act as a "disaster" that is costing jobs and leading to confusion.