Health care reform bill passes the house, but will it pass the Senate? (video)

November 8, 5:59 PMUS Headlines ExaminerCharisse Van Horn

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Referred to as historic by both President Obama and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, the passing of health care reform bill H.R. 3962 has certainly made history, however the vote is far from over. The passage of the health care reform bill is monumental in several ways, but one in particular is that it is a reflection of President Obama’s administration.

After an upset and loss of two democratic governors this week to the GOP, it appeared that President Obama’s administration might be in trouble. The win last night, as slim as it was- the bill passed with only a five vote lead and needed 218 to pass, there were 220 votes)shows that President Obama’s most important domestic priority (along with the economy)still ranks high with the public. What also needs to be looked at more closely, however, is the fact that 39 Democrats voted nay and that the House just barely passed the legislation with a two vote lead. The real test will be when the bill goes before the Senate and how it plays out there.

Anh Joseph Cao was the only Republican to vote yea and reportedly the difference was the amendment to the bill opposing abortion. How the amendment will affect the bill in the weeks to come has yet to be seen. Staunch Republicans and pro-life supporters might become more favorable towards the bill with the new amendment. However, the bill does retain public option- a hot spot for many Republican senators across the country. The public option was the source of much heated controversy and debate during the summer’s town hall meetings across the country.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham announced on today’s Face the Nation that the House Bill was D.O.A. in the Senate. Senator Graham referred to the bill as ‘written for liberals by liberals.’ He also referred to the narrow margin in which it passed as well as the 39 Democratic defectors and stated that he would join Liebermann by filibustering a bill that includes the public option. Senator Graham stated, “They bailed out on this bill. It was a bill written by liberals for liberals. And people like Joe Lieberman are not going to get anywhere near the House bill. It cuts Medicare about five hundred billion dollars. It’s over a trillion dollars in new spending. It does have the public option. So the House bill is a non-starter in the Senate.