By Felicia Sonmez and David A. Fahrenthold
Suggested Reading
The House on Wednesday evening passed a bill that would repeal the national health care overhaul, approving the measure on a largely party-line vote.
The repeal bill passed 245 to 189, with three Democrats — Reps. Mike Ross (Ark.), Dan Boren (Okla.) and Mike McIntyre (N.C.) — joining Republicans in backing the measure. The three were among the four Democrats who voted earlier this month to advance the measure. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), who remains in serious condition following this month’s mass shooting in Tucson, was the only lawmaker not voting.
The bill’s passage came after Democrats unsuccessfully staged an eleventh-hour vote in an effort to derail the Republican-sponsored measure.
The Democratic move, which would have made the repeal effort ineffective unless a majority of lawmakers gave up their federal health care benefits within 30 days of the bill’s passage, fell short in the GOP-led House.
While the repeal passed the House, ultimately, it is expected to fail.
To actually repeal the law, Republicans would need the approval of the Democrat-controlled Senate and President Obama, unless they have enough votes to override his veto. They are not likely to get that approval.
That made Wednesday’s debate look like a dress rehearsal for an entirely different discussion: not whether the bill should be repealed, but how it might be changed.
Read the rest of this article at the Washington Post.
Straight From 
Sign up for our free daily newsletter.