Well the ball keeps moving. Politico is reporting that the mark up of the Reconciliation Bill starts Monday in the House Budget committee. No idea what specifically will be in the Reconciliation bill but at least it is a start.
http://www.politico.com/...
The House Budget Committee will begin marking up the reconciliation bill on Monday, beginning the first step in the legislative process to pass reform. Democrats are still awaiting a cost estimate from the Congressional Budget Office, which could come as late as this weekend. Republicans have already planned a press availability for Friday to push back against the planned Monday markup.
It has been reported that the mark up of the Reconciliation bill in the House Budget Committee will take at least 4 days so this is a good sign that the process is moving along if indeed the process starts Monday.
http://www.politico.com/...
The House Budget Committee could take up to four days to mark up health reform language and get it to the Rules Committee, Budget Chair John Spratt (D-SC) said Wednesday morning, because of a set of rules that "necessarily protract the process by several days." The Budget Committee is tasked with making sure the health reform bills passed by the House Ways & Means and Education & Labor committees meet reconciliation instructions, but the committee won't be tackling the actual reconciliation bill.
"We've got the traditional rule whereby we give a 24-hour notice to the opposition.... before the markup, and then 48 hours lay-over after the markup, so it will take necessarily several days as this process plays out," Spratt said. The 48 hours is a reference to the two days the minority party is given to submit its views between the end of markup and the start of the subsequent Rules Committee markup. Spratt also said the committee would likely spend "the better part of a day in markup;" a committee spokesman explained that was necessary because committee Republicans are expected to file amendments to try to derail the process.
Still unclear what happens next but at least we know that the ball is continuing to move forward.
Nancy Pelosi will be on the Rachel Maddow show tonight. I am sure that Rachel will press Speaker Pelosi on what will happen next. It will be must see TV for those who want to see health care reform passed ASAP.